Interview: Social Innovation from the Perspective of DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission

R.S. What is the European commission’s perspective on Social Innovation (SI) and what are the current discussions in the field of SI? S.B. I deal with corporate social responsibility, and as far as that is concerned in relation to social innovation, we are looking, for example, at innovations in products and processes which have social goals. I am thinking of companies who are making devices for disabled or blind people and they bring about innovations in those processes, which enable disabled people or blind people to have a better quality of life. More broadly SI for me is also a softer concept, about companies innovating in information and communication processes, in the obtaining of knowledge and in the use of that knowledge to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their employees. Diversity is another field of social Innovation: how you maintain efficiency and effectiveness with a diversified work force is a challenge. To ensure companies still remain cost effective at the same time as diversifying their ways of doing things to cope with the complexities of market forces is, for me, to do with community, with people management, with identities, with culture, with interaction, and with networking in the workplace. It is about having and using new ideas and ways of doing things to make the best and most productive use of a work force.