Featured December 6, 2023 Leading with modern ways of working Back to Blog Methods for leading a modern government Date October 9, 2024 | Updated on October 10, 2024 Authors Cole von Glahn Tags Innovation and Technology, Leadership and Collaboration The Partnership for Public Service and Microsoft designed Modern Government Leaders to convene expert executive innovators from across the federal government. Over eight months, the cohort shared best practices, critical challenges and proven methods for modernizing service delivery and improving business processes through innovation. Participants in the program wrote and refined their success stories featured in the library of Innovator’s Hours below. These stories draw on leaders’ efforts to identify and capitalize on opportunities to modernize their organizations. Each Innovator’s Hour puts these stories in discussion, drawing connections between them and highlighting modernization methods that cut across agencies, roles and missions. Success stories in modernizing government Our participants’ stories provide real-world best practices that leaders across government could follow to improve their agencies. They outline methods for leveraging preexisting data with new technology tools to reduce the time burden on benefit seekers by 50%. They also show how investing time in connecting colleagues leads to a happier, healthier workforce whose deeper connection to its mission shines through more efficient processes and improved career outcomes. In total, the cohort’s work can be broadly grouped into four categories. Community and culture: The Modern Government Leaders most consistently cited challenges they deemed the “fear of failure” and the “trauma of trying.” These leaders create conditions that honor and uplift individuals and their contributions by investing in, connecting and empowering their colleagues and staff. Breaking down silos: Whether it’s by implementing a shared service hub, unifying systems across agencies or carving paths across functional lines, collaborative coalitions are key to driving innovation across the federal enterprise. Technology adoption: To meet the required scope, scale and speed of modern service delivery, these leaders seek to improve critical IT infrastructure and thoughtfully adopt new technologies. They harness technology to realize their vision, from modernizing the foundational codebase that supports health care for millions to reaching new heights by adopting computer vision and generative AI. Evidence and end users: Fundamentally, the work of government is to serve the people. Data and direct engagement provide a window into what customers need, what their challenges are and how they can best be served. Equipped with that knowledge, these leaders confidently tailor specific solutions that make an impact. Woven through these strategies and techniques are a series of generalizable themes, each critical to executing sustainable innovations in government. Team: Executives must inspire, invest in and insulate staff, providing them with the resources and cover necessary to experiment. Culture: Psychological and bureaucratic barriers against innovation are often ingrained in the culture of an organization. Addressing these hurdles early eases uptake. Buy-in: Engage upper leadership to develop a personal connection to—and interest in—the success of pilot programs. Storytelling: Communicate clearly, early and often. Update as you go to continually capture hearts and minds. Opportunity: Take advantage of moments of change, high visibility and emergency to give new methods a toehold. Grow them from that seed. Pilot: Build the plane while you fly; experimentation and iteration are irreplaceable. Failure is an opportunity to learn and reorient toward a better solution. The federal government faces a constant churn of new priorities and requirements. Emphasis can shift at the drop of a political hat or with the explosion of a new technology. Whether the emphasis is on the customer experience, artificial intelligence, data-driven decision-making, agile methodologies or whatever comes next, career civil servants need to stay ready. The best way to learn about the methods and processes these senior executives use to achieve transformational change is to read and hear their own words. With these fundamental strategies and tactics for driving and sustaining innovation, you can be prepared for the next opportunity or emergency that demands your very best. Innovator’s Hour: Methods for Modernizing Government – Part 1 Recorded on Aug. 27 ,2024. Featuring: Andrea Fletcher, chief digital strategy officer, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid – Transforming critical IT infrastructure for a flexible, adaptive future. Damiana Astudillo, senior director for human and community development, Millenium Challenge Corporation – Established the Behavior and User Experience Hub to focus services on constituent needs. Harry Knight, director of the office of performance excellence, Department of Commerce – Gathering a customer experience coalition to orient Commerce’s services on user impact. Teresa Hunter, chief financial officer, Internal Revenue Service – Blending employee experience, strategic advising and artificial intelligence to streamline operations. Featured Categories: Technology Adoption, Evidence and End UsersFeatured Themes: Pilot, Buy-in, Team Innovator’s Hour: Methods for Modernizing Government – Part 2 Recorded on Aug. 28, 2024 Featuring: Ishmael Alejo, director of refundable credits program management, Internal Revenue Service – Developed and delivered rapid improvements in IRS processes to distribute child tax credits under emergency orders. Jennifer Porter, deputy administrator, Department of Agriculture – Improving meat grading accuracy and efficiency with computer vision and stakeholder cultivation. Max Pierce, director of management and administration, Department of Energy – Breaking down and rebuilding IT and HR systems to streamline collaborative, dual-agency operations. Featured Categories: Technology Adoption, Silo-Breaking, Community and Culture Featured Themes: Storytelling, Culture, Team Innovator’s Hour: Methods for Modernizing Government – Part 3 Recorded on Sept. 17, 2024 Featuring: Amanda Kupfner, assistant commissioner and chief strategy integration officer, Department of the Treasury – Lowering hurdles to program and process innovation across Treasury by creating a centralized hub for innovation services. Chad Clifford, executive director for grants policy oversight, effectiveness and training, Department of Health and Human Services – Massively reduced administrative burdens for tribal grant recipients through user-centered design and technological experimentation. Jennifer Funk, deputy chief financial officer, Department of Transportation – Implemented governance structures and data tracking systems to manage extraordinary growth in grants and programs. Featured Categories: Silo-Breaking, Evidence and End Users Featured Themes: Pilot, Opportunity, Buy-in Innovator’s Hour: Methods for Modernizing Government – Part 4 Recorded on Sept. 18, 2024 Featuring: Cara Rose, director of workplace and collaboration services, National Aeronautics and Space Administration – Reducing customer burden through data analysis and generative AI. Eric Stein, deputy director of management strategy and solutions, Department of State– Enriching workplace culture with a novel employee connection program. Janis Coughlin-Piester, chief financial officer, National Science Foundation – Accelerating record-setting grants funding distributions through enterprise cultural evolution. Featured categories: Community and Culture, Technology Adoption, Evidence and End Users Featured themes: Team, Culture, Opportunity