Permeability to value: a methodological framework for designing demand-driven value-based innovation procurements and its application

To be fully capable to respond to health system arising needs not adequately addressed through the available existing solutions, public administrations are required to spur the development, implementation, adoption and scale up of new goods or services. Innovation procurement enables public sector to act either as the promoter of the research and development intended to create adequate solutions to the arising needs (pre-commercial procurements, PCP) or to act as early adopter of innovative solutions and services that are not yet available on large scale commercial basis and that still need to generate the evidence of the value they bring to impacted stakeholders (public procurement of innovation, PPI). This article proposes a methodological framework to design and implement demand-driven public contracts “permeable to value”, referring to the ability of the “value” to pass through the whole contract life. This framework has been defined following the methodology described by Alessandrello et al. 2021 [1], including literature review of recognized framings and PCP/PPI experiences followed by a prioritization process by stakeholders. Furthermore, it presents the results of the application of the proposed framework to three European Commission co-funded call for tenders: two cross-border PCP and one PPI. This methodological framework provides public buyers with a novel method to design and implement demand-driven public contracts “permeable to value”, that take into account the perspective of all the stakeholders impacted by such contracts. Overall, it has the potentiality to enable public buyers, to demonstrate the value generated from the implemented demand-driven innovation procurements.