Work is busy, change is scary – often it’s just easier to keep doing things the way they’ve always been done. But if we were a little braver, could we make things better?

There are thousands of organisations out there all operating in wildly different ways, all backed by years of growth and learning. If the social value sector adopted some of the best methods from other industries, how much more could we achieve?

Here are some of our favourite, most stealable ideas, and what we think they could do to help us enable even more social value:

From tech: open source collaboration

Open source is the default method of collaboration in the tech industry, with companies and practitioners openly sharing their thinking and work in order to innovate and improve – fast!

Most of the internet runs on open source. Android (the world's most-used mobile OS) is open source. Even Microsoft—once fiercely protective of proprietary code—now actively contributes to open source projects.

When it comes to social value, we’re pretty cagey about sharing our stuff. Toolkits, frameworks, case studies and reports – even when these are shared, there’s a tendency to give the edited highlights. We’re nervous about IP. Worried that the information will be used to discredit us – it’s either too good to be true, or proof that we’ve not done as well as we could have.

Could we build a more open, trusting sector where transparency becomes the norm? With an emphasis that’s less on calling out people who aren’t doing what they should (although accountability is important) – and more on helping everyone do better together?

From hospitality: the Ritz-Carlton employee empowerment model

Ritz-Carlton hotels are known for allowing their employees to spend up to $2,000 per guest to improve experience and create memorable moments – without any manager sign-off required.

When a loss prevention officer in Toronto received complaints about a couple of children playing hockey in the corridor, he nipped out to a local sports shop to buy sticks, nets and balls, then invited the family to a face-off with the Loss Prevention Hockey Team in one of the boardrooms. Would this have happened if layers of approval had been needed? Nope– it would have been a fleeting idea in that employee’s mind.

What if organisations gave each employee a social value budget for the year, to be used at their discretion? Imagine: your local youth club needs equipment – as an employee, you could just go out and get that for them, no questions asked.  Even if a few people turn it to their advantage – the benefit is still likely to far outweigh the cost. It has the potential to be fantastic for community relationship building, gives immediate impact – and brilliant for employee retention and engagement too.

From healthcare: Buurtzorg neighbourhood teams

This Dutch nursing model gave small, self-managing teams full autonomy to meet local needs however they see fit. Teams of 10-12 nurses operating within the same geographical area could choose who to take on as patients, how long to spend with them, what care to provide, how to and organise their schedules. It allowed a more holistic, joined-up approach to healthcare, meaning symptoms were spotted earlier and patients received better treatment (and the nurses were a lot happier and more motivated too!)

In social value we know how important local context is. This model could present an opportunity for a variety of local stakeholders to come together – VCSEs, community leaders and local businesses – to have an impact in a specific community. With their shared knowledge, networks and ability to “temperature test” evolving local needs, they could address pressing community issues and enable long-lasting impact.

Carrying out this kind of scheme successfully can be tricky when there are competing interests and budget involved – but with transparency, trust and community interests prioritised, could it be a way to bypass generic box-ticking approaches and enable tangible impact on the ground?

The common thread…. trust!

Bureaucracy is put in place with the best of intentions. It’s often essential to keep everyone doing what they’re supposed to be doing, so we can pull in the same direction and achieve more. But sometimes it can frustrate us, stop us doing what needs to be done, and cause a barrier to entry for many.

These case studies show us that if we can identify areas where people can be empowered to make decisions for themselves, we open the door to better outcomes, increased participation and happier lives all round.

Trust can feel risky – but these sectors have shown that, in the right circumstances, it can lead to amazing things.

At CHY we’re always interested in hearing about what’s working well in other industries so we can keep making things better. You can read more about radical collaborations we love over here. Got any more good ones we can add to our list? Let us know…

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