Sparking collaborative innovation: how we design for now and the future

Something I’ve learnt is how important “permission devices” are — i.e. tools or techniques that make people want to take ownership of a space and feel at home — whether that was our exhibition space where people could relax and meet people while browsing the physical artworks or have a nap in the tent. The most famous “permission device” is probably the watercooler.

As a co-working space, the way the Hub has been designed is a permission device in its own right, from how the coffee area is at the heart of the space, how people can work anywhere and how you need to walk right around the space to get out (joking aside, you’d be amazed at how more likely you meet people that way!).

What tools or methods help you take the initiative in a space?

As a Hub Scholar, we’re starting to find out what motivates each other, through the Scholarship database of skills and through meetups…and no doubt through Mission Mixers too. We’re starting to “swarm” on particular issues — where 1:1 chats over a cuppa turn into groups of people meeting on resilience (and coming up on alternative finance and open source policy making).

The Hub is also bringing together members working on similar impact areas to think about how it can support us and how we can support each other. From social startups working on very specific needs to organisations working across the continent, I took part in the meetup on the impact area around youth employment.

These behaviours are not dissimilar to bees swarming around a tree, to extend the metaphor of @owenjarvis and @ruthbmarvel report “When Bees meet Trees” around the relationships between small and large social sector organisations. Maybe these informal self-organising groups are the prelude to “swarm cooperatives”, in other words “temporary social structures we create to solve problems, explore new ideas, and make the most of opportunities” or the “mini labs” that Social Spaces are developing in Lambeth around systemic issues.

The RNIB model described in Owen and Ruth’s report wouldn’t necessarily work in this scenario. You wouldn’t want to dilute brands as powerful as @roomfortea and @up_reach as that could dilute their impact in the process.

However, there is an advantage that the nascent network of Hub Impact areas have. By being based at the Hub, we share a similar working culture. It’s why in the “When Bees meet Trees” workshop I took part at @esmeefairbairn, the group I was in proposed that big organisations open up their unused office space for smaller organisations dealing with similar issues to work in.

Would this run the risk of those organisations swallowing up the identity of their new tenants? Would it necessarily create a culture of collaboration and openness just by having different groups in the same space? What other “permission devices” would be needed to get to a stage where it felt natural to collaborate within the space?

What this does mean for innovation?

Innovation today isn’t just about efficiency or incremental improvements. It’s about rethinking how we work together to solve the urgent, systemic challenges in front of us. Whether you’re leading a mission-based organisation, redesigning public services, or driving change within a team, the rules of collaboration are shifting — and those who adapt fastest will thrive.

We’ve seen this play out in different sectors. Local government is grappling with financial constraints but also has an opportunity to radically reimagine services with communities. Startups and B Corps are rewriting business models around collective impact rather than individual success. Even within large institutions, teams are moving away from rigid hierarchies towards fluid, adaptive networks that learn as they go.

This shift isn’t abstract. It’s happening now. The question is: how do we design collaboration that delivers immediate results while laying the groundwork for long-term transformation?

Three shifts in collaborative innovation

1. From siloed expertise to shared intelligence

Too often, collaboration means bringing different experts together — only for them to retreat back into their silos after the workshop. The real value is in creating shared intelligence — a way for insights, data, and learnings to flow across teams and organisations in real time.

The UK’s Catapult centres (UKRI) do this brilliantly, bridging the gap between research and industry, accelerating real-world applications of emerging tech.

→ At Adur & Worthing, we’ve used this approach in our participatory budgeting programme. By using digital platforms and on-the-ground support, we’ve helped communities decide where funding should go.

2. From one-off pilots to regenerative systems

Many organisations experiment with collaboration, but too often, the energy fades once the pilot ends. Instead, we need to build regenerative systems — approaches that strengthen over time as more people engage.

→ The Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL) supports cities worldwide in embedding regenerative principles into governance and local economies, ensuring policies don’t just ‘land’ but actually grow community-led impact over time.

→ Adur & Worthing’s tree-planting initiative is a small but significant example. It’s not just about greening spaces; it’s about creating a lasting community-led approach to rewilding and climate resilience.

3. From rigid plans to adaptive learning

The traditional approach to strategy assumes we can predict and control outcomes. But real collaboration — especially in times of uncertainty — demands an adaptive mindset.

→ NHS Confederation’s ‘Collaborate to Innovate’ report (NHS Confed) outlines how NHS teams are embedding rapid learning loops to test new partnerships, scale what works, and abandon what doesn’t.

→ In Adur & Worthing, we’ve applied this by reimagining how we deliver social housing — moving away from static development plans towards an iterative approach that responds to real-time community needs.

4. How to apply this in your work

If you want to create meaningful, future-proofed collaboration, start here:

🔹 Map the intelligence gap. What knowledge is locked in silos? How can you make it flow?

🔹 Design for momentum, not just outcomes. What mechanisms will keep the energy alive beyond the initial project?

🔹 Embrace adaptive strategy. What’s your ‘learning loop’ — how will you continuously test, iterate, and evolve your approach?

These principles apply whether you’re designing new policies, reinventing services, or shaping how your team works together.

5. A call to action

The future of collaboration isn’t about getting more people in the room — it’s about fundamentally rethinking how we create together. This is our opportunity to build stronger, more adaptive systems that don’t just respond to the challenges of today, but lay the groundwork for lasting, systemic change.

So, what’s one collaboration challenge in your organisation that could benefit from this approach?