Canadian Government Executive - Volume 23 - Issue 02

14 / Canadian Government Executive // February 2017 The Interview Q: You’ve been in this game for a long time now. What’s your “favourite” policy dilemma these days? I have taken a particular interest in conversations around social innovation and the role of government. Many argue that social in- novation is a bottom-up process which consists mainly in harness- ing the energy and creativity of individuals and groups who work closely with program recipients. Under this view, the role of gov- ernment would be simply to provide an enabling regulatory envi- ronment, with perhaps the addition of some financial incentives, for this grassroots social innovation to emerge. I like to think that governments can also be social innovators, by designing creative solutions to social problems and testing them out. The notion that governments are too bureaucratic or have too rigid structures to innovate is a fallacy. One interesting dilemma is the area of social innovation relates to the future of social impact bonds (SIBs). At SRDC, we have been exploring the viability of SIBs as a means to engage the private sector in the funding of social programs. In many ways, the con- cept of SIBs is appealing: the private sector invests in a social in- tervention and if pre-set outcomes are achieved or surpassed, the government pays back the private investor with a return on its investment. These pay-for-success schemes could be the source of new investments that look too risky at the outset for governments to make. Drawing more funds from the private sector, whether these funds come from banks or private foundations, would seem like an interesting idea at times when fiscal pressures make it particularly hard to propose further developments of the Welfare State. While the concept has some appeal, our early observations are that conditions for success are rather daunting. I reserve judge- ment at this time, as the SIBs scheme needs to receive a few fair tests before one can assess the viability of the tool. This may take while as we have very few SIBS being implemented in Canada and international experiences are just starting to deliver the evidence we all need. Q: What is your feeling about the policy environment in government generally? I think we are at some type of turning point. We have lived through a difficult environment over the past ten years or so. In the social policy domain, there seemed to be less resources available to do the job right. We have seen a loss of momentum on the data de- velopment fronts, reduced policy research capacity and a lack of investment by governments in testing new program ideas. As well, limited exchanges have taken place between federal and provincial governments over new program ideas, the results of pilot projects or best practices. Lately however, we are saying exciting develop- ments. With more discussion around social innovation, provincial governments have been investing in research and innovation and are looking at ways to improve the impact of their labour market programs. New behavioral insights units have been created in sev- eral federal governments and in Ontario, adding to the analytical ca- pacity. The federal government has also committed to conduct more There is a new buzz in policy circles. Advances in data analysis, the rising levels of computer literacy, and the new awareness of behavioural factors are combining with a stronger demand coming out of governments who must reconcile a scarcity of dollars with a demand for performance. CGE Editor Patrice Dutil discussed the new horizon with Jean-Pierre Voyer, the CEO of the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC), a non-profit research organization that has just celebrated its 15th anniversary. Voyer assumed the position in 2006 after many years in the federal bureaucracy. A native of Montreal, Voyer has a BA in Economics at the Université de Montréal as well as an MA in Economics from Queen’s University. Jean-Pierre Voyer NewHorizons on Policy Research: An Interviewwith