In 2022, Karlstad Municipality conducted the first procurement using the Demand Acceleration methodology. The result was a unique VR solution, ViroteaEd, which trains health and social care staff to meet people with cognitive challenges.
Since its launch in Karlstad two and a half years ago, ViroteaEd has spread rapidly to nearly 40 public and private healthcare providers. In addition, three more public procurements have been carried out with the support of the Demand Acceleration methodology in Hammarö, Helsingborg and one more in Karlstad.
The film below gives an insight into what happened in Karlstad – and how both the method and the solution made a difference.
From test in Karlstad to national dissemination
Unlike traditional procurement, Demand Acceleration is based on users and businesses exploring together how to meet business needs, in a way that also results in a solution that can be shared.
– One of the central ideas of Demand Acceleration is precisely that the services developed are also given the conditions to spread further. When the public sector develops solutions in-house, or owns and manages them, it is often difficult to reach beyond a single municipality or region. By using procurement as a tool, we instead open up for innovations that can grow and create greater value,” says Lina Svensberg, Innovation Manager at DigitalWell Arena.
How procurement becomes a tool for innovation
Karlstad Municipality’s experience shows that public procurement can be more than a purchasing process – it can be a tool to drive innovation. Demand Acceleration is a methodology to do just that, with the potential to transform how new digital solutions emerge and are used across Sweden.
According to Lina Svensberg, the fact that the very first service would achieve such great success is still beyond all expectations:
– Although we at DigitalWell Arena recognised the potential of the methodology, the development has been incredibly gratifying. Here, the support of Karlstad Municipality has been absolutely crucial to the development of the framework – from procurement experts to the commitment of the organisation. If they hadn’t dared to test it in a real procurement, there would have been a great risk that we would have got stuck in theory.
And the journey continues. Several new procurements are already in the pipeline, in areas far beyond health and social care. The Demand Acceleration methodology has also attracted international interest, including through the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).