Reflections on 21st Century Government Management

Our goal with this report is straightforward: to begin thinking about the future of government and the trends and new ideas in government management that a new president should consider as he or she takes office in 2009. The intent of this project is...

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By

Donald F. Kettl

Professor Emeritus and Former Dean

University of Maryland School of Public Policy dfkettl52@gmail.com

Steven Kelman

Albert J. Weatherhead III and Richard W. Weatherhead Professor of Public Management, Emeritus

Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government

Our goal with this report is straightforward: to begin thinking about the future of government and the trends and new ideas in government management that a new president should consider as he or she takes office in 2009. The intent of this project is to stimulate new ideas among several key audiences. We wish to spark the imagination of government leaders to look beyond their day-to-day "urgencies" and reflect upon the important challenges the nation will face tomorrow. We also seek to challenge the academic and nonprofit communities to begin looking ahead to future approaches in the management of government as they continue to analyze past successes and failures.

We would like your thoughts on these two essays by Professors Kettl and Kelman. Did they get it right? Did they get it wrong? Did they leave out an important idea? What are your thoughts on the future of government?

KettlKelmanReport