S.P.A.C.E. Framework
WHAT IS S.P.A.C.E. AND WHY DOES IT MATTER?
The Toolkit is organized around five foundational modules considered critical for innovative organizations: Strategy, Partnerships, Architecture, Culture, and Evaluation (forming the acronym, “S.P.A.C.E.”).
STRATEGY
Without a clear direction to orient their activities, teams and organizations risk launching innovation efforts that are siloed, not complementary, or do not strike the right balance between risks and rewards. The strategy tools help users chart the course for their innovation efforts by guiding them through the key decisions they need to make today to get where they want to be tomorrow.
PARTNERSHIPS
Partners can fill resource gaps, generate innovative solutions, and maximize the overall success of innovative efforts in a programmatic or operational area. But finding and selecting the best partners can be a challenge. The partnership tools help end users effectively identify and secure new partnership opportunities.
ARCHITECTURE
Innovations rarely fail because of a lack of creativity. Rather, they fail because organizations lack the systems, structures, and processes to repeatedly turn ideas into testable and scalable solutions. The architecture tools help end users build the platforms they need to execute across the innovation life cycle and sustain innovation over time.
CULTURE
Culture is consistently cited as one of the primary barriers to innovation within organizations. Employees need support, incentives, and opportunities to innovate. The culture tools help UN entities foster work environments that promote strategic risk taking and enable employees to innovate more consistently.
EVALUATION
Organizations unable to measure the effectiveness of their innovation efforts may struggle to justify their investments and communicate their successes to stakeholders. The evaluation tools help organizations assess and report on the efficacy and impact of their projects, portfolios, and pipelines throughout the innovation life cycle.
HOW DOES S.P.A.C.E. APPLY WITHIN MY CONTEXT?
Reflect on the S.P.A.C.E. framework by considering the questions below. Consider answering the questions from multiple perspectives. For example, do your responses change if you answer from the view of your unit as opposed to your team? Oftentimes perspectives vary, even amongst the same team or office. Understanding why there is variation in opinion can help uncover new insights and facilitate rich discussion on how to best address areas of strength and weakness and how to prioritize efforts.