“This important book provides an engaging explanation of why and, above all, how both institutions and individuals can make the world a better place through greater use of data, robust collaboration, rapid evidence review, and rigorous experimentation.”

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy

“Public problem solving melds traditional policy research and analysis with direct innovation and experimentation, often with a dose of technology thrown in. This book is sure to become the magnum opus in the field, written by one of its pioneers. Highly recommended!”

Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO, New America

In a world where a billion people are on the verge of extreme poverty and the adverse effect of climate change is disproportionately impacting the poorest countries, Solving Public Problems is a vital manual for showing all of us how to build forward better and accelerate the creation of innovative, sustainable, scalable solutions to our greatest challenges. A must read!

Achim Steiner, Administrator, UNDP

“This book gives you hope by showing how governments can get things done fast, effectively, and with quality. Noveck shows how to break logjams and make progress against critically important problems. Amazing.”

Anita M. McGahan, University of Toronto

“Beth Noveck’s book is a universal reminder of the importance of investing in public sector capability and collective intelligence if we want to solve the most pressing issues our democracies face today.”

Ángel Gurría, Secretary-General, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Governance professor Beth Simone Noveck, who formerly served as the first White House deputy chief technology officer, believes that “public entrepreneurship” can counter the failures that have dominated public policy design in the United States since the 1960s. Her new book, Solving Public Problems, revisits the four stages of policy design—identifying problems, identifying solutions, designing for implementation, and evaluation and evolution—while identifying 20 crucial decisions that prioritize “human-centered public policies.”

Ming Ivory, Science Magazine

In a world beset by profound and deepening problems that the global coronavirus pandemic of 2020 has only made worse, there are leaders who recognize the need to work differently to accomplish their goals and change the world. I call these leaders “public problem solvers.”

Beth Simone Noveck, Fast Company

Harvard Business School faculty members share their summer reading lists, pulling from the worlds of technology, history, and fiction to inform their work on campus.

Harvard Business School

Beth Simone Noveck, Chief Innovation Officer of the State of New Jersey, discusses her book "Solving Public Problems: A Practical Guide to Fix Our Government and Change Our World.”

Carol Massar, Bloomberg Radio

The challenges societies face today, from inequality to climate change to systemic racism, cannot be solved with yesterday’s toolkit. Solving Public Problems shows how readers can take advantage of digital technology, data, and the collective wisdom of our communities to design and deliver powerful solutions to contemporary problems.

Vikash Shah MBE, Thought Economics

In a world beset by profound and deepening problems that the global coronavirus pandemic of 2020 has only made worse, there are leaders who recognize the need to work differently to accomplish their goals and change the world.

Beth Simone Noveck

Host Carol Castiel speaks with Northeastern University professor, Beth Noveck, about her new book “Solving Public Problems: A Practical Guide to Fix Our Government and Change Our World,” in which she recounts how citizens and governments can leverage digital technology, data, and the collective wisdom of communities to design and deliver solutions to contemporary problems from the COVID-19 pandemic to climate change to social inequities.

Carol Castiel, Voice of America

Volumes have been written about the promise of new technologies and analytical tools to solve countless problems facing the nation—if we could just get public servants and congressional appropriators to adopt them, seems to be the argument. Beth Simone Noveck brings a different lens to that challenge in her recently published Solving Public Problems: A Practical Guide to Fix Our Government and Change Our World. The book is based on her experience working with successful problem solvers inside and outside of government and the tools and methods they use to make change.

Mark A. Abramson, Government Executive

This is a comprehensive and insightful argument for, and synthesis of leading practice towards, a 21st century approach of open, co-creative, agile problem solving by governments and citizens working together, on everyday issues. Good historical perspective, lively anecdotes, and rich invocation of specific case examples of public-private collaborations, and the harness of entrepreneurship--and then how to apply relevant problem-solving techniques to your community, local government, and policy making/improvement in general. Also delves deeply into the barriers and opportunities to making such change happen right now. Non-jargony, and hands-on: both a how-to handbook and compelling vision for a more modern and effective democracy.

Brook Manville, former Executive Vice President of the United Way of America and Director of Knowledge Management, McKinsey

GovLab chief and author Dr. Beth Simone Noveck joins the GovExec Daily podcast to discuss her new book.

Adam Butler and Ross Gianfortune, Government Executive

"Randomistas vs. Contestistas" - An excerpt from Solving Public Problems on RCTs and their limitations

Beth Simone Noveck, Stanford Social Innovation Review

This is her most comprehensive book yet, bursting with sage, practical advice for public sector officials and civil society actors who want to engage citizens and give them more power.

Henry Farrell, Glen Weyl, Boston Review

"This is a text that researchers of social, political and administrative sciences should all read; it is also useful for practitioners who are seeking to implement actions and strategies aimed at solving problems that concern specific social systems. This is the bedside book for public administrators." // "Es un texto que debe ser leído por los estudiosos de las ciencias sociales, políticas y administrativas; también por aquellos técnicos que participan en la hechura de acciones y estrategias orientadas a resolver problemas que atañen a sistemas sociales específicos. Este es el libro de cabecera para los gerentes públicos."

Adriana Plasencia Díaz, Dra. and Luísa Montenegro, Grupo de Investigación en Gobierno, Administración y Políticas Públicas (GIGAPP)

SSIR’s 2021 Social Innovation Reading List - Selected as one of the ten top reads for 2021

Stanford Social Innovation Review

eRepublic Top Reads of 2021

eRepublic

Solving Public Problems delivers a welcome boost of energy and optimism in a time of dread. It pulsates with a “can do” spirit and hopefulness to “solve public problems” that defies the end-times shadow that stalks contemporary commentary.

Lawrence R. Jacobs, Democracy Journal

Solving Public Problems: An Interview with Dr. Beth Simone Noveck

Ellie Vorhaben, Chicago Policy Review

This is my Book of the Year for 2021. I cannot recommend it too highly! Beth Noveck has been at the forefront of governmental innovation for years. This is the third book of hers I've read and treasured.

Bob Knisely, Apolitical