The institutionalization of public sector innovation

Public innovation policies and programmes are increasingly governed by the central government. It is argued that this institutionalization process is rooted in cultural regimes that form our basic understanding of what innovation is and does, and it is argued that the institutionalization is unfolded in specific innovative arrangements operating within these regimes. Recent developments in Denmark are used to illustrate how this institutionalization process unfolds. In conclusion, it is suggested that an understanding of both the theoretical and the operational implications of this approach is needed, and we need to be wary of the political implications of the current institutionalization.