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France

Public Service Incubators (FR0039)

Overview

At-a-Glance

Action Plan: France Action Plan 2018-2020

Action Plan Cycle: 2018

Status: Active

Institutions

Lead Institution: Minister of State for the Digital Sector, attached to the Prime Minister

Support Institution(s): Ministries: Pôle Emploi (France's public employment agency) Ministries of Social Affairs – Ministry for the Ecological and Solidary Transition – Ministry of the Interior. Local public stakeholders: City of Paris – Département of Pas de Calais – Département of Calvados

Policy Areas

Capacity Building, Science & Technology

IRM Review

IRM Report: France Design Report 2018-2020

Starred: Pending IRM Review

Early Results: Pending IRM Review

Design i

Verifiable: Yes

Relevant to OGP Values: Pending IRM Review

Potential Impact:

Implementation i

Completion: Pending IRM Review

Description

Set up digital public service incubators in each ministry
Lead institution(s):
Minister of State for the Digital Sector, attached to the Prime Minister
Other stakeholders:
Ministries: Pôle Emploi (France's public employment agency) Ministries of Social Affairs – Ministry for the Ecological and Solidary Transition – Ministry of the Interior. Local public stakeholders: City of Paris – Département of Pas de Calais – Département of Calvados
New commitment
OGP principles with which the commitment is associated:
Innovation and technology for openness
Challenges
The services we obtain from the digital economy enable simple, intuitive interactions that are changing users' expectations. "Startups d'Etat" (State Startups) are setting out to solve specific problems in users' relations with the public authorities by offering an experience at the cutting edge of technology, as defined by the digital startups.
These new public services are developed by independent, frugal teams working with their users. Well-versed in Lean Startup and agile methods, these teams are introducing new practices into public organisations.
Such services normally build APIs, or reusable software bricks, which form the backbone of the "Government as a Platform" concept.
These teams are focused on their impact on reality and the value they deliver to their users. After six months, the aim is to have achieved satisfaction among early users. Only those teams with convincing early results to show for their efforts after six months are maintained, which means that investment is channelled solely towards projects having had a tangible impact; a new investment strategy in the information systems of the public sector.
Lastly, the services developed are open-source by default, and close attention is paid to the contribution terms.
Ambitions
To encourage uptake of these practices and this working philosophy across government, there are plans to get ever more State Startups off the ground with new public partners (ministries, operators, local authorities, etc.) and to bring about incubators in the most advanced partners when the time is right.
The road map in detail

Launch 3 to 5 ministerial incubators 2018
Roll out incubators within each ministry 2019

In addition to these cross-cutting actions, the following ministries have made specific commitments:
THE MINISTRY FOR THE ECOLOGICAL AND SOLIDARY TRANSITION
AND THE MINISTRY OF TERRITORIAL COHESION COMMIT, IN THEIR RESPECTIVE AREAS, TO
Fully empowering the "Fabrique Numérique" (internal digital services incubator, 7 projects) so as to develop new uses that contribute to the delivery of public policies.
THE MINISTRY FOR EUROPE AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITS TO
Creating a ministerial incubator destined to get the Ministry's officials (developers in the IS department, intrapreneurs) working with external stakeholders (developers, startups, young innovative enterprises etc.) on innovative projects.
THE MINISTRY OF NATIONAL EDUCATION COMMITS TO
Opening a ministerial innovation lab dedicated to innovation literacy and support for innovative projects within the Ministry: formation of a team and service range in 2018.
THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE COMMITS TO
Supporting the development of innovative digital services through the "Startups d’État" scheme run by Beta.gouv.fr, particularly the Pass Culture initiative, a mobile app which will allow youngsters to access the local artistic and cultural education provision with a dedicated digital portfolio.

IRM Midterm Status Summary

10. Set up digital public service incubators in each ministry

Language of the commitment as it appears in the action plan:

The services we obtain from the digital economy enable simple, intuitive interactions that are changing users' expectations. "Startups d'Etat" (State Startups) are setting out to solve specific problems in users' relations with the public authorities by offering an experience at the cutting edge of technology, as defined by the digital startups.

These new public services are developed by independent, frugal teams working with their users. Well-versed in Lean Startup and agile methods, these teams are introducing new practices into public organisations.

Such services normally build APIs, or reusable software bricks, which form the backbone of the "Government as a Platform" concept.

These teams are focused on their impact on reality and the value they deliver to their users. After six months, the aim is to have achieved satisfaction among early users. Only those teams with convincing early results to show for their efforts after six months are maintained, which means that investment is channelled solely towards projects having had a tangible impact; a new investment strategy in the information systems of the public sector.

Lastly, the services developed are open-source by default, and close attention is paid to the contribution terms.

To encourage uptake of these practices and this working philosophy across government, there are plans to get ever more State Startups off the ground with new public partners (ministries, operators, local authorities, etc.) and to bring about incubators in the most advanced partners when the time is right. [46]

Milestones

10.1 Launch 3 to 5 ministerial incubators

10.2 Roll out incubators within each ministry

Start Date: 2018

End Date: 2019

Context and Objectives

In 2013, the government engaged on a path toward the simplification of government processes. These efforts were especially directed toward interactions between users (citizens or companies) and the state. The agency in charge of simplification and modernization acted on a suggestion from an entrepreneur, Pierre Pezziardi. Pezziardi suggested the government use start-up incubators to solve specific problems through digital means. [47] There are currently 65 active state startups working with 15 government agencies. [48]

This commitment aimed to spread the start-up practice and philosophy to the whole public administration at all levels of governance. It would start with the creation of three to five incubators. Besides the institutions mentioned in the general commitment, the Ministry for the Ecological and Solidary Transition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Culture expressed ambition to set up their own incubators to support the creation of state start-ups.

The IRM researcher does not consider the commitment relevant to OGP values. Its aim is first and foremost the improvement of internal processes and the improvement of e-government practices. It does not include any public-facing element. The text of the commitment does not clearly differentiate between state start-ups and incubators, which creates confusion regarding the ambition of the commitment. The action plan does not provide any information regarding the selection of the first ministries to set up incubators.

In terms of impact, the IRM researcher deems this initiative to have a potential minor effect. The overall ambition of the state start-ups is significant. It aims to change practices between the administration and its users and introduce a new type of public service. In the context of this assessment, however, the problem that this innovation is supposed to solve is not spelled out clearly enough to be able make such a statement. The IRM researcher thus considers this commitment, if fully implemented, to be a minor incremental step to improving the relations between citizens or companies and the state.

Next steps

Despite the overall significance of testing new approaches to public administration, the current commitment is not relevant to OGP and its values. The IRM researcher suggests this commitment not be carried forward to the next action plan, or that it be made to fit the objectives of improving access to information. This could involve including citizens in public affairs and providing them with means to hold the government accountable. The next action plan could instead focus on incubators that made information available to the public or that facilitate public participation. This could give policy makers an incentive to use the incubator methodology to open government.

[46] For a Transparent and Collaborative Government: France National Action Plan 2018–2020, https://www.opengovpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/France-Action-Plan-2018-2020-English.pdf (accessed on 10 January 2019).
[47] Béatrice Madeline, “L’Etat Passe en Mode Start-Up,” Le Monde, 23 September 2018.
[48] Etalab official, email communication with IRM researcher, 19 February 2019.

Commitments

  1. Transparency of Public Services

    FR0030, 2018, E-Government

  2. Transparency of Public Procurement

    FR0031, 2018, Access to Information

  3. Transparency of Development Aid

    FR0032, 2018, Access to Information

  4. Expand Open Data

    FR0033, 2018, Access to Information

  5. Improved Data Policies and Administration

    FR0034, 2018, Access to Information

  6. Transparency of Public Algorithms

    FR0035, 2018, E-Government

  7. Open Data at Sub-National Level

    FR0036, 2018, Access to Information

  8. State AI Lab

    FR0037, 2018, Automated Decision-Making

  9. Administrative Capacity-Building

    FR0038, 2018, Capacity Building

  10. Public Service Incubators

    FR0039, 2018, Capacity Building

  11. Streamline Data Flows

    FR0040, 2018, Access to Information

  12. Open Etat Forum

    FR0041, 2018, E-Government

  13. Online Procedures Dashboard

    FR0042, 2018, E-Government

  14. Govtech Summit

    FR0043, 2018, Capacity Building

  15. Improve Public Consultation Mechanisms

    FR0044, 2018, E-Government

  16. International Transparency and Citizen Participation

    FR0045, 2018, Aid

  17. Public Pariticipation in Sustainable Development

    FR0046, 2018, Access to Information

  18. Open Science

    FR0047, 2018, Access to Information

  19. Citizen Involvement in Cour Des Comptes

    FR0048, 2018, Access to Information

  20. Transparency of Interest Representatives

    FR0049, 2018, Access to Information

  21. Access to Information on Public Officials

    FR0050, 2018, Access to Information

  22. Open Regional and Local Authorities' Data

    FR0001, 2015, Access to Information

  23. Publish Municipal Council Decisions and Reports Online

    FR0002, 2015, E-Government

  24. Publish Building Permits in Open Data Format

    FR0003, 2015, Access to Information

  25. Starred commitment Increase Transparency in Public Procurement

    FR0004, 2015, Access to Information

  26. Improve Transparency in International Development Aid

    FR0005, 2015, Access to Information

  27. Open Access to Public Policy Evaluations

    FR0006, 2015, E-Government

  28. Involve Citizens in Cour Des Comptes Work

    FR0007, 2015, Access to Information

  29. Access to Public Officials Transparency Obligations

    FR0008, 2015, Access to Information

  30. Starred commitment Beneficial Ownership

    FR0009, 2015, Anti-Corruption

  31. Transparency in Extractive Industries

    FR0010, 2015, Anti-Corruption

  32. Transparency in International Trade Commercial Negotiations

    FR0011, 2015, Access to Information

  33. Fix My Neighborhood

    FR0012, 2015, E-Government

  34. Digital Fix-It

    FR0013, 2015, Access to Information

  35. Co-Produce Data Infrastructure with Civil Society

    FR0014, 2015, Access to Information

  36. Starred commitment Open Legal Resources

    FR0015, 2015, Access to Information

  37. Reform Participatory Mechanisms

    FR0016, 2015, Public Participation

  38. Mediation and Justice

    FR0017, 2015, Access to Justice

  39. Starred commitment Open and Circulate Data

    FR0018, 2015, Access to Information

  40. Open Calculation Models and Simulators

    FR0019, 2015, Access to Information

  41. Open Platform for Government Resources

    FR0020, 2015, E-Government

  42. Improve Public Services Through E-Government and User Interaction

    FR0021, 2015, E-Government

  43. Empower Civil Society to Support Schools

    FR0022, 2015, E-Government

  44. Diversify Recruitment Within Public Institutions

    FR0023, 2015, Capacity Building

  45. Culture Change

    FR0024, 2015, Capacity Building

  46. Spread Public Innovation

    FR0025, 2015, Capacity Building

  47. Starred commitment Protect Against Conflicts of Interest

    FR0026, 2015, Anti-Corruption

  48. Civil Society & Transparency in COP21 Conference Planning

    FR0027, 2015, Environment and Climate

  49. Open Data and Climate/Sustainable Development

    FR0028, 2015, Access to Information

  50. Collaborate with Civil Society on Climate and Sustainable Development

    FR0029, 2015, Environment and Climate

Open Government Partnership