Louisiana’s Lieutenant Governor recently took part in a roundtable, co-hosted by the Aspen Institute and Root Cause Public Innovators, to discuss the newly released report, "Advancing Social Entrepreneurship: Recommendations for Policy Makers and Government Agencies".  Included in the panel were a government official, a social entrepreneur, two think tank policy experts representing the political left and right, and an expert on social entrepreneurship.
 
As the conversation unfolded, one of the topics that became a hot point of discussion was the tension between innovation and accountability, particularly as we try to connect government with social entrepreneurs.  As Lieutenant Governor Landrieu put it, “If I put money into an organization or effort that appears to have great potential, but fails, the taxpayers aren’t going to say to me, ‘Well, good for you for trying. Good for you for taking the risk.’”  While the public tends to like the idea of “being innovative” (the benefits of which tend to play out over the long term), we also rightly insist on seeing tangible results from money that is spent…but often focus on the short term.
 
As we encourage social entrepreneurs to accept a role for government in social problem solving and encourage government to become a partner in supporting these innovative and potentially transformative solutions, we must address the conundrum of holding to high standards those to whom we endow resources (be we taxpayers, individual donors, foundations, or government agencies distributing grants and contracts) while still allowing some room for the failure that is inevitable in experimentation and testing. 
 
While relevant across sectors, this tension between accountability and experimentation is particularly acute for government officials.  Those who are elected to office must explain a failure to voters…and voters have a tendency to punish politicians who make short-term sacrifices in service of a long-term goal.  Meanwhile, civil service employees who lead government agencies often feel that their job is at stake as well, since government systems are often structured in a way that encourages loyalty and adherence to the status quo at the expense of creativity and innovation…and often, results.
 
Yet there are many public innovators out there – government officials who, like Lieutenant Governor Landrieu, are accepting such risks to their own careers in order to open the door to both innovation and accountability in social problem solving.  And they need our support.  Root Cause’s Public Innovators initiative conducts research and convenes stakeholders; provides a website hub of recommendations and best practices; and supports governments in the practical application of these methods.
 
To the public innovators who are reading this – we congratulate you on your commitment to truly moving the dial on the many social problems facing our nation and world. We firmly believe that your efforts hold the key to maximizing the reach and impact that social-entrepreneurial solutions can offer.
 
This posting also appears on the America Forward blog.