NGO engagement in the creation of public service innovations: A configurational, explorative approach

This article offers critical insights for practitioners interested in the evolving landscape of public service innovation. It highlights the significant role that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play as co-creation partners in government innovation projects, with nearly half of surveyed NGOs participating in such initiatives. Importantly, the study shows that NGOs with experience in service innovation are more likely to collaborate with government, emphasizing the value of past innovation experience in fostering successful partnerships. The authors explain the motivations behind NGO engagement, revealing that improving user experience, gaining insights, and strengthening relationships with government are key drivers. The findings suggest that co-creation is not just about service improvement but also about capacity building for NGOs through knowledge transfer and learning opportunities. Practitioners will benefit from understanding these dynamics, which reinforce the principles of New Public Governance (NPG) by highlighting the importance of collaboration and network-based innovation.Previous research suggests that the relationship between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and governments with respect to public sector innovation is changing from a contractor role for outsourced public services towards a more collaborative approach in which public services are increasingly co-created with NGOs and other actors. This article uses unique data from a pilot survey of NGOs in six European countries to explore the involvement of NGOs in the development of public sector service innovations and investigates what motivates NGOs to participate in their development. The analysis finds that NGOs play an important role by introducing public service innovations and acting as a co-creation partner in government service innovations. The main motivation for NGOs to participate in the co-creation of public service innovation is to improve the user's experience of the service. Additionally, the most innovative NGOs used these co-creation arenas as learning opportunities to gain experience in developing service innovations and gain insights into user needs.