Chris Mihm

The High Risk Report and How Government Can Coordinate to Better Serve Everyone

Submitted by on Mon, 04/07/2025 - 13:38
The report identifies 37 federal programs and operations that are most vulnerable to waste, fraud, abuse and mismanagement, or in need of transformation. Several of the high risk areas are consistent with the National Academy of Public Administration's (Academy) Grand Challenges.

Building Resilience: The Role of Cross Agency Priority Goals in Addressing Complex Shocks

Submitted by on Tue, 12/10/2024 - 15:22

Executive Director Note:  Earlier this year, we shared news of the Center’s new Advisory Council. We are pleased to introduce the Center’s new Advisory Council Chair, Chris Mihm, Adjunct Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs, The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University and former Managing Director for Strategic Issues at the US Government Accountability Office.

Eight Areas for Government Action - Insights on Resiliency

Submitted by on Tue, 01/09/2024 - 18:38

Insights detailed in this chapter derive from the IBM Center report, Preparing governments for future shocks: A roadmap to resilience by Chris Mihm as well as informed by the Future Shock roundtable discussion and resources.

Preparing governments for future shocks: A roadmap to resilience

Submitted by on Wed, 11/01/2023 - 13:48

Contributing Authors: Rob Handfield, Bank of America University Distinguished Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management, North Carolina State University and Tony Scott, President and CEO, Intrusion, Inc.

This cascade of catastrophic events raises fundamental questions about how governments can anticipate, prepare for, and respond to these and other shocks yet to come.

Preparing Governments for Future Shocks: Building Climate Resilience

Submitted by on Fri, 10/27/2023 - 10:21

Indeed, they are shocks—more frequent and more destabilizing. While governments were exposed to a host of mostly unforeseen challenges from the global pandemic, they have captured valuable lessons. Leaders understand where they need to concentrate their readiness efforts for “future shocks,” carrying the momentum from rapid, pandemic-driven innovation into their preparation.

Preparing Government Workforces for Future Shocks

Submitted by on Wed, 07/12/2023 - 10:52

Government leaders and partners recently discussed how best to develop a skilled workforce to prepare for and respond to crises across multiple domains.

Systemic shocks are becoming more frequent, interconnected, and destabilizing. Geopolitical conflicts, cyberattacks, public health emergencies, supply chain disruptions, and climate-related disasters (extreme heat, wildfires, hurricanes, drought) are among the many overlapping shocks increasingly confronting societies across the globe. 

Partnering for Resilience

Submitted by on Tue, 12/13/2022 - 10:15

Government leaders increasingly agree that “rare unexpected events” are now neither rare nor unexpected. Indeed, they are shocks—more frequent and more destabilizing. One now follows closely on the heels of another, and multiple events occur at the same time. For example, the pandemic continued as the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. Various climate challenges arose such as severe flooding in France, drought and bushfires in Australia, water shortages in California, and extreme heat in China.1 Now the economic fallout from the pandemic and the war has the World Bank and others

Chris Mihm

Submitted by on Thu, 04/26/2018 - 17:43

As an Adjunct Professor at Syracuse University, Chris teaches graduate courses on public administration and democracy and performance management. He is the former Managing Director for Strategic Issues at the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) where he led GAO’s work on governance, strategy, and performance issues. He is also a fellow and former Board Chair of the US National Academy of Public Administration.

Adjunct Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs
The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University

As an Adjunct Professor at Syracuse University, Chris teaches graduate courses on public administration and democracy and performance management. He is the former Managing Director for Strategic Issues at the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) where he led GAO’s work on governance, strategy, and performance issues. He is also a fellow and former Board Chair of the US National Academy of Public Administration.

Chris is the Deputy Chair of the Governance, Audit and Compliance Committee of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), and for 2022, the Chair of the World Health Organization’s Independent Expert Oversight Advisory Committee.