Looking ahead at key challenges and opportunities for government

The Center’s new report is the result of multiple interviews with government leaders, an assessment of research and reports on challenges and opportunities from the Center and many other sources; and a roundtable involving key government, academic, and industry officials last May.  

Trend 2: Risk

Given budget austerity and increasingly complex challenges facing government executives, managing risk in the public sector has increasingly taken on new significance. Risks take on many forms, including national security risks via cyber­attacks, economic risks from natural disasters, budget and program risks, or privacy risk. However, government leaders lack an accepted culture and framework in which to properly understand, manage, and communicate risk.

Leading the U.S. Government Accountability Office: Insights from Gene Dodaro, Comptroller General

accountability to the American people? Last month, Comptroller General Gene Dodaro joined me on The Business of Government Hour to explore these questions and so much more. Here are some insights from this discussion:

Leading the U.S. Government Accountability Office: Insights from Gene Dodaro, Comptroller General

How is GAO working to help put the country back on a sustainable fiscal path? What is GAO doing to assist Congress in support of its oversight of decision making responsibilities? How is GAO overseeing federal programs and operations to ensure accountability to the American people? Last month, Comptroller General Gene Dodaro joined me on The Business of Government Hour to explore these questions and so much more. Here are some insights from this discussion:

 

The Responsibility of Government in Building Civic Engagement

We should all see it as part of our civic duty to contribute toward the common good. However, many people do not connect with the governing process in a meaningful way. Perhaps this is where government can do more by further engaging citizens and driving civic awareness.

Fortunately, there are a number of ways, already tested at multiple levels of government, that citizens can interact with public organizations and contribute to improved services for all.  Such examples are summarized below, and provide excellent models for government to enhance citizen engagement.

The OMB Prize Memo

OMB deputy director for management ,Jeff Zients, released a 12-page memo, “Guidance on the Use of Challenges and Prizes to Promote Open Government.”

2012 Call for Research Report Proposals

Our aim is to produce research and analysis that helps government leaders more effectively respond to their mission and management challenges.

The IBM Center is named "The Business of Government" because its focus is the management and operation of government, not the policies of government. Public sector leaders and managers need the best, most practical advice available when it comes to delivering the business of government. We seek to “bridge the gap” between research and practice by helping to stimulate and accelerate the production of actionable research.

Challenge.gov: Using Competitions and Awards to Spur Innovation

One new approach is the use of challenges, which use “crowdsourcing” to canvass solution approaches for particular problems. Challenges open up new avenues for connecting people who have innovative ideas to people in government who can implement these ideas. A recent IBM Center report, Managing Innovation Prizes in Government by Luciano Kay, examined various models pioneered in the private sector to connect innovators with ideas to businesses looking to solve problems. This report by Dr.