The Solution Economy

Regular readers of my blog are probably aware that I am a regular listener of the Harvard Business Review IdeaCasts, the podcast part of the HBR Blog Network. I like to listen to the podcast when I drive, and I frequently find parallels in the subjects discussed and what is happening in the world of funding and delivering services to individuals with developmental disabilities.

I discovered an especially pertinent parallel earlier this week when I listened to a podcast interview of William D. Eggers and Paul Macmillan, authors of “The Solution Revolution.”

The interview begins with the premise that, as a society, there are many incredibly challenging and complex problems that we expect our government to solve, and increasingly, it seems as if our government is incapable of solving any problem, big or small. Following that premise, the question is posed, “what is stopping government from being able to work on some of these big problems?”

Eggers and Macmillan argue that a key reason for this seemingly inability for our government to solve problems is that government tries to do so many things that it is impossible to do any of them well. In fact, government often finds itself working at cross purposes – like creating programs to fight obesity among Americans while subsidizing sugar producers at the same time. And in too many cases, the government tries to solve these problems unilaterally, without tapping into the skills and resources of the not for profit and for profit sectors.

One way out of this quandary proposed by Eggers and Macmillan is by tapping in to what they call the “solution economy” - the space where public problems are being solved. The two note that savvy governments are realizing that they can make government dollars go much further if they can leverage investments in solving problems that are already out there - investments made by foundations, by companies, by social entrepreneurs, and by social venture capitalists. When governments collaborate with a variety of organizations, both for profit and non-profit, solutions to complex problems are easier to discover and implement.

I believe that Colorado’s system of funding and delivering services has historically been an effective model of a solution economy. Imagine!, in its role as a Community Centered Board, would receive state and federal funds and would then utilize local resources, both for profit and not for profit, to maximize the value and output of the funding. Each sector in turn brought tremendous value to the solution. It worked remarkably well for a long time.

I fear that in the recent decade we have moved away from this solution economy approach to services in Colorado, and at a terrible time to do so. In fact, this is the very time when no one sector should attempt to solve the problem alone.

In a field with many challenges, one thing that I know has been successful for a sustained period of time is the community based approach to delivering services that is the hallmark of Colorado’s I/DD system. The nonprofit and market driven for profit sectors should be continually recognized for the value they bring to the table. This isn’t a system that can be successful where the solution is driven entirely by the government. All sectors need to be part of the solution.

Then again, what do I know?