The publication of this report is particularly timely. The summer of 2011 was dominated by negotiations between Congress and the president concerning the deficit of the United States and the need to dramatically reduce federal spending in the decade ahead. There is little doubt that agencies across government will need to cut costs while maintaining, if not improving, the performance of their operations.

I remember the story of a Virginia state trooper who visited the office in the state’s driver’s license bureau responsible for revoking the licenses of drunk drivers.  The office had been notoriously slow in doing their job, but after the officer told them how a drunk driver, whose license had not been revoked even though it was ordered by the court weeks before, had killed a little girl, and that he needed their help in keeping these kinds of drivers off the road.  By personalizing what seemed to be a mindless job, the staff in the office re-thought how they did their work and sp

We do this by bringing together insights and perspectives, blended with an equal measure of practicality and reflection, from an array of government leaders,

Hear from a varied group of leaders, innovators, practitioners, and thinkers, who offer models to follow, provide insights that infuse theory to practice, and pave the way to shaping the business of government. Our guests will include Vice Admiral Jack Dorsett, Dr. Bobby Braun, Dr. David McClure, Richard Spires, Clarence Carter, and Russ Mills as they discuss public management challenges and innovations.

Hear from a varied group of leaders, innovators, practitioners, and thinkers, who offer models to follow, provide insights that infuse theory to practice, and pave the way to shaping the business of government. Our guests will include Vice Admiral Jack Dorsett, Dr. Bobby Braun, Dr. David McClure, Richard Spires, Clarence Carter, and Russ Mills as they discuss public management challenges and innovations.

This edition of The Business of Government magazine has as its background a period rifewith significant challenges that go to the core of effective public management. Faced withseemingly intractable issues such as an ever growing federal deficit, economic uncertainty,unemployment, and aging infrastructure, it appears that the old adage “doing more withless” has taken on a whole new reality. Addressing the challenges arising from this newreality brings with it opportunities—to try different approaches, borrow new strategies,

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