Multi-Stakeholder Digital Collaboration and Social Innovation in Social Services: The Cross Project and the Smart Cities

Abstract

The chapter outlines an overview of the state of social protection in Europe and focuses on a significant component of it, the social services sector and its reform needs. Most social services are provided at the municipality level. Innovation in the cities has recently developed in the framework of the Smart Cities, though the “urban smartness” discourse reveals to be ineffective when marginal conditions are involved. Since the first half of 2010’s Digital Social Innovation (DSI) has proved the capability to create public value. DSI owes much to the vision of the commons which is actively reshaping the relationships between state, market and civil society, and underlining the importance of the non-monetary economy. DSI and commoning are considered by practitioners as a promising approach for delivering social innovation powered by digital technology in the social service sector, since public services can be considered commons. Within this conceptual framework four European cities, Roma, Turin, Seville, Manchester committed in 2012 to the “Citizens Reinforcing Open Smart Synergies” (CROSS) project. CROSS aimed at engaging citizens and creating new synergy between the diverse stakeholders of the social service urban ecosystem, thanks to digital tools, such as social cryptocurrencies, collaboration processes and mobile apps. CROSS provided immediate relief to people in need while trying to convince public administrations to open a new way for co-producing services and change the relevant policies. The chapter reports a successful technological strategy and comments on the nonmonetary contribution of the works in the sector and. Finally, the impact analysis demonstrates how far the initiative has carried benefits to many citizens and social care professionals, has combined social and economic value creation, as well as it has empowered the cities with the opportunity of data-driven policy making.