Ambition of the Ultimate Stakeholders.

Bram is asked to set up a new public service organization for three local authorities. It will help residents with work, income and participation in community life. Budgets, staff and a building are available. A shared reception desk seems an obvious improvement. One phone number, one website and one name above the door. Bram prepares for the launch.

Imagine the organization two years later. Fatima comes in. She wants to return to work, but she is caring for her mother and has not been able to arrange childcare. She is given appointments with different staff members. Each helps with a separate part of her situation. Three weeks later, she has still not been able to move forward. “I thought one front door meant someone could help me find a way through,” she says.

Access has become simpler. The support behind the door still reflects separate departments rather than Fatima’s life.

Return to the beginning. Bram first examines residents’ experiences, available resources and the organization’s public mandate. Then residents and public decision-makers explore what they want their community to make possible fifteen years from now. They want people to be able to work, care for others and participate in community life, with support when circumstances make that difficult. Residents are the ultimate stakeholders this service exists to serve. Their desired future must be considered through public dialogue and democratic decisions. Bram’s task is to lead the organization’s contribution.

That future opens up questions beyond today’s structure. Could support be coordinated around a person’s situation? What agreements and partnerships would make that possible?

With Route ICR, the team makes the Ambition and its implications explicit. It develops the business model and examines how services, resources, responsibilities and processes need to connect. The organizational framework helps it identify gaps, dependencies and risks. The first pilot focuses on residents whose needs cross service boundaries. The team agrees who will coordinate support and what each partner will contribute. It assigns actions and review dates in the platform. Alongside waiting times, it follows whether residents can actually take their next steps. When a handover fails, the team investigates and improves the process.

The desired future gives the organization a reason to develop arrangements that do not yet exist. For Fatima, a better service means knowing how the help she receives fits together and who will help her move forward.

What future should your public organization help make possible for residents, and does the way it works support that future?