This edition of The Business of Government magazine has as its background a period rife
with significant challenges that go to the core of effective public management. Faced with
seemingly intractable issues such as an ever growing federal deficit, economic uncertainty,
unemployment, and aging infrastructure, it appears that the old adage “doing more with
less” has taken on a whole new reality. Addressing the challenges arising from this new
reality brings with it opportunities—to try different approaches, borrow new strategies,
forgo old ways of doing things, and leverage seemingly incongruous practices to ameliorate
otherwise vexing problems. Within these pages, we have assembled a varied group
of leaders, innovators, practitioners, and thinkers, who in their own way offer models to
follow, provide insights that can infuse theory to practice, and pave the way to shaping the
business of government.