Government innovation labs: The success or otherwise in improving how governments deliver their work

Josh Forde takes us through what a government innovation lab is, why the sudden proliferation of them, what — if anything — is new, and what challenges are emerging.

Being based in Wellington, I get exposed to lots of discussions on innovation policy — much of it angsty! Having participated in a fair few innovation projects, incubators, prototypes and getting my hands dirty, I’ve noticed trends emerge and re-emerge and it gets difficult to understand what programs mean. It’s also difficult to get a wider perspective on the meaning and achievements of innovation programs — certainly many great people take part in govtech efforts and they routinely come up against big challenges working in the public service.