Chapter 13 - Social Innovation

Summary

Whereas business innovation is related to commercialization, market demands, and profitability, social innovation addresses fulfilling social needs and meeting public demands. Social innovation depends more on government support and satisfying interest groups than on investors. Social problems are ‘wicked problems’ because they are tremendously complex, have multiple causes, and are interconnected to other problems. Collaborations are therefore needed for solving the world’s biggest challenges such as global warming; supplies of energy, water, and food; aging societies; public health; pandemics; and security. Achieving social innovations requires the combined contributions of the public sector, businesses, and citizens. It depends on adaptive intelligence in which people have novel and compelling ideas (creative intelligence), can ensure that these ideas are logically sound and coherent (analytical intelligence), can put these ideas into practice (practical intelligence), and can apply them for the common good (wisdom). Another source of intelligence is artificial intelligence that should be directed toward grand challenges that span health, wealth, and wisdom.