Companies can make a major contribution to their community by doing the thing they do best - innovating. Instead of treating corporate responsibility (CSR) as a bolt-on reputation management issue, companies should direct human resources from their core business to developing innovative solutions to social problems.

The public sector should not see corporate social innovation (CSI) as a form of back-door privatisation. It is precisely where companies are not core service providers that they have the space to develop new approaches to intractable social problems, as the case studies examined in this report show. By placing the emphasis on corporate social innovation, companies can initiate community projects without fear of ending up as a public service provider if the project succeeds. They should focus on experimentation, not provision.

'The more superficial arguments for using business expertise in government and public service delivery have run into the sand. Public-private partnerships do not automatically create a more efficient use of resources. But the Government does need a stream of ideas and corporate social innovation could be a major supplier of new thinking'

• After conducting an in-depth analysis of successful CSI projects, Rachel Jupp produces a set of key recommendations aimed at developing an innovative approach to social programmes. They include:
• Creating structured opportunities for key employees to become involved in CSI projects;
• Establishing sabbatical and exchange programmes to allow employees to learn about social innovation;
• Focusing project assessment on the social benefits rather than impact on corporate reputation;
• Creating a business social innovation tax credit for investors in social innovation

Rachel Jupp was a senior researcher at Demos