Patricia Lucas | 20 Jun 2025

Innovation moves faster and delivers better results when it is laser focused on the problem to be solved. We argue that integrating inclusion, localisation, and system-fit into problem solving will make solutions for development more impactful and more likely to scale.

At Colectiv we believe Responsible and Inclusive (R&I) innovation needs to be the engine of innovation. Innovators and technologists need practical and straightforward tools to make this happen. In this, our second blog on R&I in innovation for development contexts, we introduce a suggestion for integrating R&I into innovation maturity and progression assessment.

Working with the Frontier Tech Hub, we saw up close how technical challenges could soak up all the attention. When you are working fast using frontier technologies, it's easy for the technology itself to take the centre stage. Teams should be encouraged and rewarded for solving complex technical tasks, but if social and governance tasks are overlooked barriers to implementation or adoption can be missed.

Understanding of how a technology will operate in context is crucial for project progress. We need a new model for understanding innovation maturity that looks across four areas:

• Problem maturity: How well do we understand the problems we're trying to solve?
• Innovation maturity: Are we rapidly testing and iterating with user feedback for this context?
• Partnership maturity: Are the right people at the table, especially local actors?
• System maturity: How will the solution affect the system it's in, and vice versa?

By looking across technology, partnerships, and systems contexts, this model asks innovators to engage with a range of stakeholders. It makes explicit why and how R&I actions are necessary for progress. Projects which have both progressed their technology and are human-centred with mature partnerships in the local system are closer to launch. (See the full report here)

We believe a more holistic assessment of technology maturity will make sure that technology is socially ready, delivering responsible and inclusive tech in every project.