Incubators and accelerators for public sector innovation

In the face of complex societal and technological transformation, governments are turning to incubators and accelerators to help their public institutions experiment safely, act quickly and embed more adaptive, forward-looking ways of working. This paper analyses 128 cases of public sector incubators and accelerators, looking at their capacity to help governments address institutional bottlenecks and better anticipate or respond to transformative change. The cases examined indicate that incubators and accelerators act as public sector innovation enablers that can support efforts to (re)design public institutions to better navigate complex challenges and evolving reforms. The paper examines how incubators and accelerators have been adapted to the public sector, considers common barriers and enablers, and suggests a blueprint for their design that comprises five key dimensions: strategic purpose, ecosystem engagement and co-ordination, organisational context, performance mechanisms, and value creation. Finally, the paper provides a step-by-step approach to help governments tailor these programmes to their own specific contexts.