Building blocks for public private partnerships

#Building blocks

All of the public-private partnerships (PPP) in the Katapult network start from virtually the same premise: they want to build sustainable public-private partnerships that will support future-proof vocational education. Despite sharing similar goals, PPPs differ greatly in what they want to accomplish, what they do, and how they organize their organizations and work. This means that a PPP can develop in many directions. To illustrate both the similarities and differences between PPPs, we think of them as being built with modular building blocks, like Lego.

In practice, we can divide PPP activities into six building blocks:

We advise PPPs to start with a focus on one building block and expand step-by-step from there. Experience has shown that different combinations of building blocks lead to different & predictable outcomes based on the combination of elements the PPP focuses on. For example, developing and sustaining innovative forms of education requires curriculum innovation. A context-rich infrastructure along with curriculum innovation, and education & recruitment are required for developing successful lifelong learning programs. It’s best to build and develop a portfolio one block at a time.

Once your PPP has established a solid foundation, then scaling becomes an option. A solid foundation includes enough expertise and influence within a strong network to act as a catalyst to enthuse new target groups. With that in place, scaling can include adding new activities, target groups, and partners to an existing PPP. In many cases, continued development is required to maintain the PPP’s position in a dynamic, ever-changing environment.