Business, Society and Public Services: exploring new directions

Hey guys, I’m Atif Shafique and I’m currently working with the 2020 Public Services Hub at the RSA. My colleague Henry Kippin has recently written an article for the RSA Fellowship site which I feel explores vital contemporary issues around the ‘Big Society’, public service reform and the role of business in society, and it would be great to get your perspectives on the article as well as the broader themes it raises.

The article considers many of the questions the RSA and its fellowship network have engaged with over the years. From Matthew Taylor’s exploration of ‘enlightened enterprise’ to concepts such as ‘philanthro-capitalism’, the ‘circular economy’ and ‘creating shared value’, it is clear that there is an impetus for a new role for business in society – one that marries profit and shareholder value with social goals through pro-social long-term business strategies. It is clear that we need to move beyond conventional CSR initiatives.

But how is this changing discourse relevant to public services? Currently, the public services landscape is demonstrably in flux – the Coalition government is rolling out a programme of deficit reduction and opening up public services. It is asking civil society to step up to the plate and contribute towards the ‘Big Society’.

The role business in this has been unclear or unspecific. While the government is attempting to re-invigorate the economy through localising enterprise infrastructure, encouraging SME development and hinting at a shift towards a public service model powered by mutual and social enterprises, the private sector is suffering from the current economic climate. Economists and policymakers across the spectrum have also consistently declared that the economic model that led us to the crash is bust, but thus far no real alternative has been articulated.

At the same time, new thinking emerging from political economists and influential elements of the business community is providing us with the possible basis of a new model: businesses that combine a return on shareholder investment with a broader social purpose. Nestlé’s application of Michael Porter’s concept of ‘shared value’ and the work companies such as B&Q have been doing in the community (which the RSA has been involved in) are exemplars of this possible shift.

The 2020PSH also believes that this ‘shared value’ model can help deliver the ‘Big Society’ vision through a public service reform framework that incorporates social productivity – which is the idea that public services should be co-productive and citizen-focused. Through shared value, shared spaces and new resource challenges, these new directions can be explored.

What are your thoughts on these developments, and on the possibility of this new model being introduced beyond a micro-level?

Link to the full article: http://www.thersa.org/fellowship/news/business,-society-and-public-...