An economist evaluating America’s competitive position would place “innovation and technical achievement” high on the list of items that differentiate our business environment. The list of American companies that have created new markets or revolutionized existing industries is long and ranges from tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon to non-tech companies like Nike, Starbucks, and Costco.

And yet, despite all of this creativity, technical aptitude, and apparent prosperity, our country is in the midst of a civic crisis of historic proportions. Income inequality, racial discord, government gridlock, public distrust, and other long-term issues are on the rise and largely being ignored. So the question before us is how we marry the tools and techniques developed in the business sector and use them to address these issues? Can we take our innovation DNA and apply it to the civic challenges that are going to re-shape our country over the next twenty years?

I think of this work as civic engineering – applying all of our skills and talents to problems that affect our local, state, and national communities. I would argue that civic engineering requires what I call “BXT Creativity” – which is the process of stepping away from the “current approach” and evaluating new ideas in the areas of Business, eXperience, and Technology.

  • Business:  What new types of business thinking can be applied?  Netflix has had three different operating models in its lifetime – mail order, online subscription, and premium content – and each of those approaches has helped it drive change successfully and avoid becoming the next Blockbuster.
  • eXperience:  At the heart of most successful innovations is a new experience for the customer. Apple made us smile, first with a mouse and graphical screen and then in its “second coming” with the swipe of a fingertip. And, calling a cab became a lot easier when Uber hit the market. Providing pleasurable, productive experiences is a key element in leading innovation.
  • Technology:  While the coolest tech doesn’t always win, technology that addresses a real customer need can lead an organization up the food chain of success. Tesla’s iconic cars are packed with new technical approaches that fix traditional car issues and help future proof their products.
Innovation in Education

The possibilities are easier to see based on an example – so let’s evaluate our education system. The business model in education is broken: Tuition continues to rise, freezing out many students, and those that do enroll and graduate leave with a mountain of debt. Our teachers are underpaid, leading to a systematic quality deficit, in particular for those students who don’t have the means to attend private schools. We continue to build more “bricks and mortar” when the economy is moving away from that type of capital investment. To be fair, new models like charter schools have been tried with mixed success, but the overall system – from pre-K all the way through university is running on an antiquated economic premise.

Our education eXperience also needs a reimagined value proposition. We must ask whether we are preparing students effectively for the right future. How do we stop summer brain drain for our public school students? Does graduating from high school prepare students for the 21st century workforce?  Is a traditional 4-year degree, complete with all the debt, the right model for many young adults? How do we re-train several generations of adults that can’t compete for jobs in today’s market? Why do we allow economic status to drive the quality of education? How do we compensate, train, and motivate highly skilled instructors? Experience is at the crux of most disruptive efforts – and our education experience demands better work.

At the technology level, we’ve invested billions in hardware and software for schools – and yet, there is a dramatic technical deficit in our approach to education. Some of the issues revolve around the basics of the digital divide – does everyone have quality internet access, in particular in rural areas and low-income communities? Others focus on using technologies like virtual classrooms to provide the backbone for a network of institutes that provide alternative forms of education to those that can’t afford a traditional, residential college experience. Often, technology is viewed as the answer – an approach I think is fundamentally wrong because it focuses on the tools rather than the outcomes – but I do believe technical advances can be a dramatic, powerful tool to improve educational outcomes.

Many Opportunities for Civic Engineers

For me, our deficits in education are an important pivot point in our social challenges, and this is just one example. I could have cited energy, the environment, the social safety net, homelessness, infrastructure, health care, or many other challenging areas. In short, this is a target rich environment with many opportunities for civic engineers to have impact if they approach problems with a new mindset and using the tools of the innovation trade.

Organizations like New Profit, Social Venture Partners, and others have been tackling challenges in this way for some time and should be applauded for their efforts. But the crisis continues to escalate, driven by poor government leadership and a dialog divide that has polarized our country. America is a land of creativity and innovation – and we demonstrate that in pursuit of profit and reward regularly. It is high time we applied those same skills to the persistent civic issues we face in pursuit of a better quality of life for all citizens.

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Original contribution by Robbie Bach, a “civic engineer” who provides strategies, creative ideas, and consulting to organizations who are driving positive change in communities.