O0YQ5

Insights on Innovation
17
Foundations like the KBF that target social change often tackle complex
societal issues, or ‘unstructured’ or ‘wicked’ problems. In wicked
settings there are no clear-cut scripts. Isolated methodologies are not
enough: different tools must be matched or recycled in different contexts.
Interventions must be designed and redesigned, guided by generic
principles. These include: developing systemic insight; combining scientific
evidence with subjective experience; creating space for pragmatic
experiments; continuous learning and willingness to work with unclear goals
and open-endedness.
Operating in wicked contexts characterised by uncertainty and interpretive flexibility
requires nuancing our ambition to ‘solve problems’ or ‘optimise solutions’. There
are no final solutions, just modest steps towards improvement.
Central to all these approaches is a pragmatic approach to experimentation: local
concentrations of assets and energy for change offering tangible opportunities for
improvement.
It is frequently prior to formal decision-making that the Foundation intervenes to
make a positive difference. We can afford to experiment and we have the unique
opportunity to bring together stakeholders across sectoral boundaries. Stakeholder
management, partners and networks are key to our work. Ultimately this means
that we never claim the impacts, although we have prepared the ground.
" It's not because
things are
dare not venture.
It's because we
dare not venture
that they are
Seneca
Like other foundations, the KBF struggles with the dominant project-based format.
We like to think in terms of interventions which are limited in time, use tightly managed
resources and a credible theory of change. We are aware of the non-linearity of the
journey but track progress towards strategies using traditional evaluation tools. This
is not good enough. There is a shift towards strong emphasis on learning within and
beyond the KBF. Innovation demands less restrictive approaches and courage to
believe in the power of small changes. It means dealing smartly with complexity and
realising radical change through incremental steps.
In 2011, at the end of a strategic plan, KBF launched its internal Best Failure Award
to encourage knowledge sharing and accelerate the innovation of philanthropic
tools. Talking about failures was unusual and the award created unease and
distrust. It became a wake-up call for much greater investment in developing a
mindset of active learning. A ‘best failure’ team of six project managers was invited
to discuss their failures with colleagues. One issue was bringing your project to a
radical stop when the theory of change is not working. If this is not done, the result
is improvisation – a signal to stop. For KBF, the best failures result from thoughtful
experimentation.
Trust and tolerance for ambiguity, continuous problem finding and puzzling,
flexibility and freedom to experiment are all vital in enabling innovation.
Tinne Vandensande, Advisor at the King Baudouin Foundation