Suggestions for Harnessing the Power of the Crowd

As Eggers and Hamill note, "Turning to large groups of people to solve problems, make decisions, and generate ideas in a decentralized way is not a new concept." What is new in this day and age is the ease with which technology had made such participation more accessible than ever. "Before jumping on the crowdsourcing bandwagon, however," Eggers and Hamill note, "government organizations must first understand the five basic models and when to use the activities associated with each."

The models described by the authors include:

• Crowd competition
• Crowd collaboration
• Crowd voting
• Crowd labor
• Crowd funding

The authors introduce handy examples of each model, hoping to guide public-sector officials to the appropriate route for establishing a personal connection with their constituents and maximizing the potential of alternative resources.