Bubbles, currents and splashes: metaphors to make sense of innovation and learning practices in the public sector

Abstract

This paper explores how metaphors can help create and reflect on project-based training initiatives in the public sector. We build on the experience of a capacity-building program for public servants led by the Brazilian National School of Public Administration (Enap) in 2020. We used the metaphor of a project as a collective diving both to design the methodology of the program, and also to analyse its effects after the end of the projects. Through conversations with project facilitators and participants, we expanded the initial metaphor, to explore how diving connects to breathing, a necessary condition for experimentation and learning. Additionally, we found that the project conditions were like bubbles and currents, creating a reference for understanding the relationship with the environment in which teams are embedded. Finally, we looked at the variable yet often overlooked outcomes that can be understood as splashes, a key metaphorical concept for discussing programs that aim to simultaneously foster public innovation and collective learning. In this paper, we present an example of metaphors acting as boundary objects, adding granularity and nuance to the inquiry into public innovation initiatives, and identifying their possible implications in relation to institutional logics and complex structures.