Transformational Government
As we look to the prospects of a new government shaping the future of our country and more importantly our roles as citizens of the planet, a few key learnings from the corporate world stand out as critical factors to consider:
- The practices of effective management have improved significantly over the past 10 years.
- The culture, roles and relationships of workers and management have dramatically changed.
- The tools available to leverage suppliers, technology and clients/constituents have expanded and in many cases been re-invented.
- Government can be more effective, more efficient and more responsive to its challenges and opportunities through a transformational re-invention of itself through the adoption of these contemporary practices.
New Practices
Innovation, efficiency and controls have seen new and different pressures, requirements, challenges and advances throughout this period.
Innovation has been stimulated by both the rise and fall of the dot.com era, the “flattening” of the world and the explosion of open development platforms, social networks, micro-segmentation and low-cost distribution and logistics leveraging Internet technologies.
Since Enron and heightened in the current environment, controls have taken on a new dimension. Sarbox, Basel, regulatory transparency, privacy and shareholder activism have dictated heighten controls but with maturity they have also increased focus on incorporating controls directly into the product and services life-cycle to create an efficient benevolent cycle.
Efficiency in this hyper-competitive environment has gone beyond 6-sigma into full-life-cycle redesigns incorporating user self-service, LEAN and Agile product development and a deeper involvement of supply chains and new technologies. These efficiencies free up more effort for innovation and differentiation and allow for R&D into the Next Big Thing.
New Culture
The age of the life-long employee has passed and the era of “portfolio” careers is here. The relationship between employer and employee focuses much more on the value of the experiences an employee can gain, the environment they operate within and the opportunities for challenge and advancement than ever before.
Gen-X, Y and beyond have shorter horizons for seeking fulfillment and demand to be heard and challenged. Generational gaps related to concepts of respect, experience, use of technology and methods of relating can lead to inefficiency and reduced productivity – especial when compared with organizations where these issues have been overcome and turned into advantages.
Tools
The tools for managing the explosion of information, the understanding of needs, the targeting of services and the integration and distribution in the new “connected-world-order” are changing quickly and accelerating innovation at speeds well beyond those in the past. Companies and services that lead the growth curves and mind-share of consumers were non-existent only a few years ago. And the methods by which constituents learn about, obtain and recommend these services are in there infancy as well.
Riding the wave of Internet connectivity, social networks, and supplier networks, open markets for ideas, tools and information have emerged where only a limited number of less-powerful proprietary services existed.
Action
The Next Big Thing for Government is all about leveraging this new fabric of access, entrepreneurship and customization and tapping the unbridled power of networked collaboration and interaction. Organizations enabling catalysts for collaboration with the crowd will create unimaginable opportunity for both – even with the challenges that must be overcome.