PLYMOUTH CITY COUNCIL FLOURISHING ENTERPRISE LEADERSHIP PILOT A customised programme, offered to leaders, seeking to create a Brilliant Co-operative Council.

FUTURESWITH PLYMOUTH UNIVERSITY

INTRODUCING LEADING ENTERPRISE INNOVATION

At Futures we believe that Entrepreneurship is not restricted to supporting business start-ups. We are interested in the mind and method of entrepreneurial behaviour, a term coined as effectuation (Sarasvathy, 2011).

Entrepreneurial leaders are individuals who, through an understanding of themselves and the context in which they work, act on and shape opportunities that create value for their communities through their organisations. Such value also recognises positive impact for the natural environment.

Through the approaches we will introduce here, we are preparing leaders to introduce new products/services, processes and ventures in this authority; in short we seek to enable leaders to practice entrepreneurship of all kinds.

This enterprise programme seeks to address the following questions with delegates.

What value does your organisation uniquely add to the world, in ways that enable innovation, to create enterprising solutions that address the major issues of our time?

How do we support the development of such new enterprise/innovation solutions collectively with our communities and with our partners?

This programme is aimed at those interested in designing innovative solutions; solutions that support the ambition that THIS authority, its people and communities can thrive, together with the natural environment.

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PARTNERS

FAIR

RESPON

SIBLE

DEM

OC

RATIC

BACKGROUND TO THIS ENTERPRISE INNOVATION PROGRAMME

We have significant experience of delivery within corporate and service functions within local authorities, Education and the Health sector, through national remodelling, capacity building and bespoke senior leadership programmes. Futures Enterprise Centre also conducted preliminary work to align leadership development, in line with the vision and values of the wider authority.

LEADING CHANGE

Leaders have cited the desire to create a learning culture, where new ideas can be quickly trialled without blame, should they not work well. Learning from trials instead can be used to inform continuous innovation.

Feedback from senior managers in Street Services, Customer Services and IT partners

CUSTOMER SERVICE EXCELLENCE

There is a strongly expressed desire to develop much more integrated partnership working across the authority and beyond with outside groups, businesses etc.

COMMERCIAL PARTNERING

Leaders wish to act faster on commercial opportunities that may exist in partnership with stakeholders.

Plymouth is a place where people can have

a say about what is important to them and where they can change

what happens in their area.

We will provide strong community

leadership and work together to

deliver our common ambition.

We will be honest and open in how we act, treat everyone with respect, ????? fariness and create

opportunities.

We take responsibility for our actions, care about their impact

on others and expect others will do the

same.

WE ARE

CO-OPERATIVE VALUESONE TEAM SERVING OUR CITY

INITIAL FINDINGS FROM OUR NEEDS ANALYSIS INFORMED THE REMAINDER OF THIS PROPOSAL

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Forming coalitions for learning through enterprise action.Another element central to our proposed design involves drawing out new talent within services to develop leadership potential, through the creation of new innovation proposals, championed by senior leaders within the service and involving other relevant stakeholders. This engagement approach facilitates interpersonal development, while growing individual confidence and experience.

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Our ethos and approach to enterprise innovation at Futures. In order to cultivate an attitude of flourishing; namely a state where organisations/enterprises can prosper, people can excel, as opposed to simply doing less harm overall, we therefore need to mobilise a very different outlook to innovation; one which re-connects our values and motivation to create significant change very differently.

Appreciative Enquiry is a proven approach to enable managers on this programme to respond to an ambitious authority vision, by building from a position of our strengths and considerable expertise and to therefore lead change more positively. This design framework is outlined here.

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DISCOVERY Strengths

Innovations and Insights

Positive Core Assets

DREAM OPPORTUNITIES

Valued future we want

DESIGN Aspirations

Brainstormer

Opportunities

Rapid Prototyping

DEPLOY Results Aspirations

and Action Plans Post-Programme Momentum

Sustained

THEDESIGN

TASK

METHODOLOGY

Once coalitions for action teams are formed, we will actively apply action-learning principles, to support teams and the effective development of enterprise innovations. We draw on non-directive coaching approaches, (Including the GROW model) and creative problem solving methods, to stimulate fresh thinking and ownership for innovations going forward. These approaches are also used to stimulate on-going reflection on the process at individual level with implications for wider impact. The implications of that will be reviewed for leadership, team working and for wider communications with citizens and partners.

SESSION TIMINGS

It is anticipated that delegates will have enough time between sessions to maintain momentum and to actively engage new and existing service users and partners, to trial ideas and innovations as they emerge. It is also recommended that they meet as an Action Learning Set to review progress over a 2-3 hour period at least once between sessions and continue this practice to maintain momentum post programme.

FIRST AND FINAL SESSION SPONSORSHIP

It is recommended that senior leaders and politicians actively sponsor proposals and innovations coming forward and that they participate at the programme start and give feedback and developmental support to proposals at the end of the programme, as part of a series of final day presentations.

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CASE STUDY: MOVING THROUGH THE PLYMOUTH CITY COUNCIL PROCESS

The Plymouth pilot consisted of six facilitated days with Futures. High-level sponsorship from senior leaders was embodied by their presence and decision making at two key events: 1. the launch and 2. the team presentations.

Between events the participants were given enough time to maintain momentum and to actively engage existing service users and partners to trial ideas and innovations as they emerged. It was also recommended that they met as an action team over a 2-3 hour period at least

once between sessions - to review progress, generate ideas and further the project. There are currently being encouraged to continue this practice to maintain momentum of their projects, post Phase I of the programme.

Each participant had/has an identified sponsor for this programme. They were encouraged to meet their sponsor at least once between events and to continue these meetings post Phase I.

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Coalitions for action teams were formed in the first event around challenges of common interest. Those Directors and the Chief Executive not directly engaged in the events, have been brought up to speed through the recorded participant presentations made during the programme. • Psychometrictests,tooffer

insights into personal, team and organisational culture. Also guidance on preferred styles of leadership, learning and management

• Coachinginterventionstogenerate positive goals for individuals, teams and the organisations, encouraging positive social and environmental impact

• Creativethinkingandproblem solving techniques

• Rapidprototyping

• Developingaspirationalstatements and presenting for impact

• Customerservicejourneymapping

• CustomerValuepropositioncanvas

• Sustainablebusinessmodeldesign

• Stakeholderengagementstrategy

• BusinessCaseProposal Development

Utilising enterprise models and leadership development frameworks. The programme made use of a variety of tools at different stages of the process:

We also used examples of organisational breakthroughs from other sectors, co-operative councils and flourishing organisations.

• CleanCarTravelusingElectric VehiclesattheAuthority

• TransportSurveyforBusinessin PLYMOUTH

• TheI-Tickettopromotegreateruse of our heritage assets in the city

• TheHubreconfiguringcustomer relations to support development of our public spaces

• Newworkingpatternsfor maintaining refuse collection and street cleaning services across the city

• StrategicBusinessPlanning Models for Long Term Investment

• CommercialisingWasteServices (Garden Waste Management)

• Rethinkinglibrariestoreachand extend services to our citizens

• StaffPortal:StaffIntranettosupport learning, development and cross departmental working

• MyOceanCity:PersonalisedCity Council page for every citizen

• OutsourcedITsupportservice company DELT: Created a range of strategic business planning proposals to present to its Executive Board.

Plymouth City Councils Enterprise ProjectsTeams created 11 distinct proposals 10 of which were presented to members of the PCC executive team. They are as follows:

An emphasis is placed upon forming coalitions around common challenges, working in these teams to develop and later deliver incubation projects. So the programme starts with an emphasis upon the qualities of a Clan culture, but swiftly moves on to the features of an Incubator culture – generating creative ideas, proactive treatment of challenges, inspired creation of ways forward emerging from the working relationships between service users and fellow staff. People who are concerned enough to risk getting involved and welcome the challenge of change. The discipline of good project management, will subsequently be essential to develop and implement a well thought through timely solution.

The way people are engaged in this type of programme facilitates interpersonal development, whilst growing individual confidence and experience. The results have surprised and even stunned some participants, their managers and the senior leadership team at Plymouth City Council. How well the organisation flourishes as a result of this first pathfinder programme and the subsequent planned new waves remains to be seen. However, at the end of the beginning we have much good news to report and a growing optimism from many towards changing other parts of the Council.

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SUMMARY:This Enterprise Leadership Programme invests: time, personal development, support and faith in some key people within the organisation, who lead each cohort’s incubator projects.

FUTURESWITH PLYMOUTH UNIVERSITY

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Developing Futures with Plymouth University

Room 203, Mast HouseShepherds Warf24 Sutton RoadPlymouth, Devon, PL4 0HJUnited Kingdom Web: www.futurescentre.org

Email: futures.centre@plymouth.ac.uk

Twitter: @PlymouthFutures