Social innovations are new social practices that aim to meet social needs in a better way than the existing solutions, for example improving working conditions, education, community development or health. These ideas are created with the goal of extending and strengthening civil society. Let’s recap on the potential for social innovation for cities, click here.
Social innovation is the process of developing and deploying effective solutions to challenging and often systemic social and environmental issues in support of social progress. Social innovation is not the prerogative or privilege of any organizational form or legal structure. Solutions often require the active collaboration of constituents across government, business, and the nonprofit world.—Sarah A. Soule, Neil Malhotra, Bernadette Clavier (From Stanford GSB)
There are many context when we talk about social innovation, one of it is stakeholder engagement.
However, what are the context for stakeholder engagement to bring forward social innovation?
Stakeholder engagement is the systematic identification, analysis, planning and implementation of actions designed to influence stakeholders. A stakeholder engagement strategy identifies the needs of key groups and the sponsor plays a vital role in ensuring those business needs are met.
Example of stakeholder engagements:
- Public participation
- Meaningful participation
- Civic engagament
- Civic leadership
- Stewardship for change
- Legitimacy
- Inclusive participation
Stakeholder engagement helps to proactively consider the needs and desires of anyone who has a stake in their organization, which can foster connections, trust, confidence, and buy-in for your organization’s key initiatives.
