After eight years of operating in the private sector with companies like Amazon, Mondelez and HSBC UK, Cowry Consulting is formally taking its operations into a new space: The public sector.
From 2024 onwards, Cowry Civic Solutions, the sister arm to Cowry Consulting, embarks on applying behavioural science to optimise how charities, governments and international organisations work. Cowry Civic is tailored to convey our organisation’s targeted aim to optimise programming and experiences for the ultimate end consumer– the public, whether this is domestic, regional or global. The reality is that institutions across the public sector are frequently time- and resource-constrained, with very little leeway for error and unintended consequences. It is here where Cowry plans to infuse partnerships with behavioural strategy to move public sector initiatives towards evidence-based efficiency, effectiveness, and innovation.
Our vision is to deliver “Robust Behavioural Science. Reimagined.” Civic will be positioned to bridge traditional behavioural methods that are tried and tested, with the more innovative capacities that Cowry Consulting specialises in, like EEG and eye-tracking. By working in the civic space, we aim to leverage our private sector expertise in agility, design and innovation, re-tooling our strengths to thoughtfully address civic and societal challenges. This aligns with our overall mission of making a positive impact in areas like health, sustainability, and social inclusion.
Our value proposition revolves around adding innovation to proven solutions for the public, development and charity sectors. Specifically, this looks like:
- Introduce and test innovative interventions for complex civic challenges
- Drive positive, sustainable societal change
- Safeguard and foster efficient use of public sector resources by creating evidence through pilots before scaling
- Encourage public<>private collaborations for wider societal impact
- Ultimately, empower governments and organisations to confidently embrace the future through data-driven, human-centred decisions
Cowry has already dipped its toes into this space, demonstrating the ability to create meaningful improvements in public sector program design and implementation. For instance, it has worked on improving a communications approach with Keep Britain Tidy to decrease littering via implicit testing. It has also helped the NHS to improve its Healthier You Diabetes Prevention program uptake by 22.5% and has augmented the Asian Development Bank’s capacities to apply behavioural science internally.
Our immediate focus in 2024 is on expanding our client portfolio, building a strong reputation in the public sector, growing academic relationships and demonstrating the tangible impact of our projects. We are most excited about intentionally entering into spaces like sustainability, environment, climate, service provision, social inclusion and gender equality while simultaneously investing in innovative partnerships and in-house capacities. We’re especially excited to explore partnerships between public and private actors, such as connecting ESG initiatives with local community-based organisations, academia and others to drive meaningful campaign impact and behavioural change.
At Cowry Civic, we’re not just a consultancy; we are your strategic partners in reshaping the public sector through hard-hitting evidence-based design and a relentless commitment to excellence.
Interested in partnering with Cowry Civic or learning more? Contact ruthcanagarajah@cowryconsulting.com.