Collaborative innovation in the public sector and the policy design dilemma: a promising analytical perspective

Collaborative Public Sector Innovation (CPSI) is emerging as a new concept aimed at transforming public sector policymaking in a post-New Public Management (NPM) world. It harnesses the potential of emerging governance networks to foster innovation and generate public value. Despite a growing interest among public policy and public administration scholars, CPSI remains an underexplored framework for public sector innovation, particularly regarding its relevance to policy design. This article evaluates this emerging theoretical framework and offers recommendations to advance the analysis of CPSI as a novel approach to public sector reforms. Drawing on the findings from the articles comprising this special collection, it also highlights the theoretical, analytical, and empirical challenges that lie ahead for the consolidation of CPSI, encouraging debate among both academics and policy practitioners. The discussion, structured around a set of identified challenges for the development of CPSI, reflects not only on the concept itself and the theories that support this emerging post-NPM approach to public administration reforms, but also on its relationships with policy design and policy implementation. Additionally, the article examines the added value that specifically designed arrangements should bring to public sector innovation outputs and outcomes.