Radical Efficiency a Practical Guide - Nesta

INTRODUCTION 2INTRODUCTIONYou have picked up this booklet as a leader in a publicservice organisation who is facing hugely difficultdecisions. Spending cuts of up to 25 per cent over thenext few years are a daunting prospect. The biggest messagefrom this booklet should be that taking bits out of the currentsystem is not the only option. This ‘less for less’ approach willbe very damaging given the scale of proposed cuts. Thereare alternatives. It is worth investing the time to explore anddevelop new approaches.This booklet outlines a constructive way for you to makebetween 20-60 per cent cost savings and improve outcomesfor service users at the same time – radical efficiency. It is notsimply about improving current services, but creating new anddifferent services with much better outcomes for the peopleyou serve.Our experience working with local authorities on radicalefficiency in practice has shown that the process can bemobilising and energising. Although timescales for cost-cuttingare tight and the current environment is difficult and draining,radical efficiency offers practical steps and hope for somethingbetter in this tough time. It helps public service professionals topursue the mission that attracted them to their roles in the firstplace – it is a route to helping improve the quality of people’slives, even as cuts in spending are unavoidable.This booklet offers practical tips to service leaders on howto start developing different, better and lower cost services.It is relevant for decision-makers in many different services,