Innovation

WE INNOVATE … TO FUTURE-PROOF THE SOCIAL SERVICE SECTOR WITH IMPACTFUL AND SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS.

Definition

  1. Innovation means designing new solutions to meet emerging needs or transform existing services.
  2. Innovation puts end-users at the centre of the design and delivery process.
  3. Design thinking is a mindset and an approach to find innovative solutions for complex social challenges.
“We realise that people tend to focus a lot on what to do, however before we know what to do we must first know the why, it is very important to know the purpose of why you are embarking on this innovation journey.”
TRISTAN GWEE
Assistant Director, Presbyterian Community Services

 

Process

Design Thinking framework
Adapted from NCSS Social Innovation Starter Kit page 10.

Using Design Thinking Approach

Design Thinking constitutes 5 phases. An innovation team would journey through these phases in iterative cycles, starting from Empathy towards Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test.

  • Empathy – Research and immerse in needs and challenges of our service users
  • Define – Analyse research, develop a point of view and refine the design challenge
  • Ideate – Informed by research insights, generate as many ideas as possible
  • Prototype – Transform conceptual ideas into tangible prototypes
  • Test – Test early and improve through iterating

Guiding Questions

  • WHAT challenge(s) are we trying to overcome?
  • WHO are we designing for?
  • WHAT impact do we want to make?

Resources Available

  • Social Innovation Starter Kit + Templates ‐ NCSS has developed and published a Social Innovation Starter Kit which includes guiding principles and mindsets of the human-centred design process along with dozens of specific methods and tools, as well as examples and case studies contextualised to the social service sector.
  • For more Innovative initiatives by NCSS, refer to the Innovation and Productivity page.