What if we could infect government with the ideas, values and disruptive energies of entrepreneurs?
What makes small businesses successful? They’re focused, purposeful organizations, where personal passions, creativity and agility overcome a consistent lack of resources.
This makes small business the plucky antithesis of government, which are sprawling organizations with multiple mandates and blasé employees driven more by process than by passion or achievement.
But what if we could infect government institutions with the ideas, values and disruptive energies of entrepreneurs?
That’s the objective of two not-for-profits that won awards this month at the Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship in Oxford, England. One, founded by a former video-game maven, parachutes coding experts into government organizations to ensure that public services operate “for the people, by the people.” The other embeds dynamic young professionals into one-year fellowships to revolutionize health care in Africa and the U.S. It was co-founded by the twin daughters of former U.S. president George W. Bush.
Six Skoll awards were handed out in Oxford to organizations involved in projects such as affordable renewable energy, a mobile “layaway” savings model to help small farmers produce better harvests, and a digital platform that reduces barriers to reporting sexual assault.
But the two attempts to fix government strike me as the most ambitious. Government waste breeds cynicism, inequality and despair. The entrepreneurs tackling this intractable problem could spur new efficiencies around the world.
New York City-based Global Health Corps (GHC) was founded by six young Americans: activists, tech entrepreneurs and the two Bush daughters, Jenna and Barbara (who was named for her grandmother, who passed away last week). Attending a global conference on AIDS in 2008, the six young leaders discovered they shared an impatience with the slow pace of progress in health care.
“Our ‘big idea’ was – and still is – that great ideas don’t change the world, great people do,” Barbara Bush (GHC’s CEO until January) explained in an email interview with the Financial Post. “We realized that there was a major implementation gap in global health. Millions were dying from treatable illnesses because they weren’t being reached with the incredible life-saving tools and information we have. On the flip side, we saw a huge supply of passionate, talented young leaders who wanted to change the world. So we set out to maximize this interest by recruiting and training a new generation of leaders to ensure people can live full, healthy lives, no matter where they live. We are seeding the global health field with incredible talent who will continue to work and effect change throughout their careers.”
GHC has now trained and placed 1,000 “fellows” under the age of 30 in medical facilities and governments in the U.S., Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi and Zambia. Last year, 5,000 people applied for 140 positions. One hundred entities applied to be among the 60 hosting organizations.
Each fellowship involves a team of two, who back each other up as they identify problems and push for solutions. This year, only 47 per cent of the participants have health-care backgrounds, because flaws in the system aren’t always medical. One architect found a better way to design African hospitals to reduce infection. Another fellow, with supply-chain experience at The Gap, helped a national health ministry ensure that medical supplies always get to the point of care. “These examples prove that even government, with the right kind of talent, can change,” says Daniela Terminel, GHC’s new CEO. “A system can’t change if you’re only looking at one part of it.”
Through online chats, local chapter events and an annual summit, GHC keeps its alumni engaged and connected. “When they finish the program, it’s just the start of a lifelong journey,” says Terminel. After all, GHC’s real objective is building continuous improvement. Supporting that goal, notes Terminel, “83 per cent of our alumni are now in a senior role or ready to move into one.”
The other Skoll award winner is Code for America (CFA), founded in 2009 by Jennifer Pahlka, a leader in tech media and events. Organizing industry conferences such as Web 2.0 and Gov 2.0 helped her see how far government was falling behind. She founded CFA to help local and state entities improve service by embracing tech-industry concepts such as design thinking and iterative, user-centered approaches.
CFA trains “fellows” every year to run initiatives to improve the ways governments offer services. For instance, nearly half of Americans will rely on food stamps for financial assistance, but the application process is usually daunting. CFA helped California design an app that registers participants in minutes. A CFA chapter in Tulsa, Okla., found that that city commonly jailed people accused of minor crimes until their trials – risking the loss of their jobs or even their children. The coders developed a text-messaging system that ensured defendants could be set free and still show up for their trial dates.
Code for America now has 70 local “brigades” whose work has helped more than 500,000 people. “This journey has taught us that technology and design, applied to the enormous asset of government, is an incredibly effective way to help people at scale,” Pahlka told the Skoll audience. She says CFA’s efforts are even firing up public servants. “The people we call bureaucrats are actually a massive force for good, who are just hungry for the tools and approaches that will let them effectively help their fellow citizens. And we, the people, can help them unlock that enormous potential.”
Positive change can be infectious. Asked how she got into the social-change business, Barbara Bush pointed to her experience as a president’s daughter. “My parents raised me to believe that to whom much is given, much is required. I was encouraged to be curious about the world and to care deeply for others. I was privileged to travel across the United States and around the world with my parents, meeting incredible changemakers doing their part to solve problems along the way. That type of exposure and inspiration can’t be forgotten.”
Rick Spence is a writer, consultant and speaker specializing in entrepreneurship.
rick@rickspence.ca | Twitter.com/RickSpence