Due to the escalation of the coronavirus crisis and in the interest in safety for our fellowship community, grantees, partners and beyond, RFG has suspended all in-person programming until further notice.
The Foundation extends its appreciation to our Fellows, grantees, partners and collaborators for continuing to engage in public service, especially those involved in policy and action to address the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr. Michael Schneider, RFG Fellows’ Career Adviser and director of the Maxwell School of Syracuse University’s Washington Public Diplomacy Program, offers sage advice during these difficult times for our Fellows, alumni, and others in public service. If you have questions or ideas for future columns by Dr. Schneider please email Communications Manager Lauren Hertel.
When Bob Dylan wrote and sang, “For the times, they are a-changin” in 1963 he heralded a new era of civil rights reform, propelled by the rising generation of Boomers. Seen in today’s light, the reformers achieved much, but hardly all they had imagined. As the 60s aged and U.S. involvement in Vietnam grew, Dylan’s anthem showed more irony than success. Dylan’s message was essentially optimistic, somewhat akin to today’s “OK, Boomer…” comment. Today’s times post a far more gloomy challenge.
More than half a century later, we’re going through another transition with important impacts and implications for governance and public service. Public servants – like all Americans — are deeply affected by the spread of COVID-19, and also concerned about intensifying political and policy controversies as the election campaign heats up, the stock market collapses, and the country faces severe challenges to governance.
COVID-19 massively disrupts academe…
As of late March, with COVID-19 threatening the health of tens of millions Americans, American academic institutions have gone online. University officials are looking at ways to substitute ‘distance learning’ for gathering in classes. This is an awkward choice, but might lead to greater innovation in learning technology. The ‘chat room’ function of most systems might help save courses, by allowing students to consider issues in smaller break-out groups. For sure, new varieties of research, consultation, integration of information and opinions will emerge. Data Visualization, an increasingly important element for government and think tank work, and already used in many fields, is likely to become more important for academe.
… and the workplace – including the feds.
Government agencies at all levels are charting the many ‘what ifs’ of the disease, including how to fulfill public needs as more and more feds work remotely. One among many possible outcomes might well be a major effort by the USG, as well as states and cities, to markedly increase their communications technologies to both harden key sites and adopt new technologies, making it possible for more federal employees to have greater flexibility. After traditional USG processes are reinstated after the pandemic is over, I’d bet that communication flexibility, redundancy and sustainability will be even more prominent on the agenda of government reform.
We all should take another hard look at improvements in how government at all levels – and internationally – can work better together to solve dangers such as COVID-19. As John Hamre, CEO at CSIS, wrote recently:
“Some may think we can keep out everything we don’t like—infectious disease, immigrants, pollution, illegal drugs, counterfeit products, trafficking in vulnerable women and children—by closing our borders. The reality is we live in a modern age where the movement of people, goods, money, ideas, etc. spans the globe with relative speed and ease.
When I meet with the incoming cohort of CSIS interns, I always tell them that all the really complex problems in the world are horizontal, and all the governments are vertical. It is impossible to solve these horizontal problems only when they come to America’s shoreline. Now even the most ardent nationalists can see clearly that the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse can’t be stopped by one country acting in isolation.
This pandemic also highlights an interesting dimension of international cooperation. We basically have two forms of governing internationalism—treaty-based and consensus-based. Treaty-based internationalism establishes institutions of cooperation, but we are seeing that world health organizations are not strong. Nations intentionally limit the strength and competence of treaty-based international institutions.
Consensus-based internationalism takes the form of varying and changing “coalitions of the willing”. Such coalitions are relatively easy to establish and can be abandoned when we don’t like the direction they are heading. But these coalitions of the willing are not normative, and they form a patchwork of cooperation, leaving gaping voids. What is fascinating about this crisis is to see a new form of international cooperation, and that comes from the vast and impressive horizontal professional networks that have emerged over the past 30 years. It is a bottom-up internationalism. In an era when politicians scorn expertise and disparage international organizations, we see an impressive network of true professionals working with others in distant lands to understand a complex problem and start to craft practical strategies to deal with it.
The coronavirus would exploit U.S. employment and healthcare gaps
Nextgov carries an interesting and troubling article, “The Problem with Telling Sick Workers to Stay Home,” from The Atlantic. What choice do most workers have if they’re pressured or feel responsible for going to work? Perhaps emergency federal funding for those forced out of work by the current health crisis will help.
The election and transition to a new administration also loom closer
The Partnership for Public Service has announced its quadrennial project on transitions to the next Administration. “Elections Mean Transition, Even if the Incumbent Wins,”says even if the Trump Administration emerges victorious next fall, experts agree there will be changes. There would likely be significant differences if a new Admin is voted into office, but the experts agree now is the time for agencies and USG employees to start thinking about options for change, no matter who wins in November. The Partnership interviewed transition teams from recent elections. It makes for wonky, but important, reading.
Volcker Alliance report weighs in for more attention to reform
A report authored by RFG Adviser and expert on government issues, Paul Light, calls for more attention to reform, not just new policy initiatives, if the Democratic Party hopes to win the Presidential race this coming fall. Light identifies four streams of thought in both parties –
He argues that public trust in government is so low that the Democrats will not be able to gain enough support with only ambitious new initiatives.
See https://www.volckeralliance.org/news/volcker-alliance-releases-report-how-americans-desire-government-reform-will-impact-2020 and an excellent summary from Paul’s commentary, “Six Ways the Demand for Government Reform Will Shape the 2020 Election,” for the Brookings Institution.
This report argues that “the rebuilder’s dilemma is a key to Democratic success in the 2020 election: No Democratic candidate can win the nomination without embracing the party’s appetite for almost everything the federal government provides. Nor can the party’s nominee defeat Trump without also embracing its high demand for very major government reform. If Democrats go too far in courting expanders, they could lose the rebuilders; if they move too far toward rebuilders, they could turn off expanders. ”
Slowing Commerce in China and around the globe, plummeting stock markets bode ill for the Thrift Savings Plan, BUT…
… think long and hard before pulling out your investment! This might/might not be a severe and long-lasting dip in the market, with serious consequences, especially for the elderly on fixed incomes. However, a ton of experience from investors of all kinds and every generation suggests that by the time the market drops, it’s too late to protect your investment. In addition, once sold, returning to that investment is only very rarely timed right. The wisdom of the investment sages is to stay on for the ride and expect in some future time the market will rebound. You might lose some years of growth, but the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a long-term proposition. Thanks to broad economic growth and the “miracle of compound interest” (as Pat Moynihan dubbed it) you’ll most likely be better off, particularly if your TSP is cautiously invested in a mix of index funds reflecting the diversity of the market.
According to Government Executive:
“The common stocks of the Thrift Savings Plan’s C Fund had the worst performance last month, falling 8.24%. So far this year, the C Fund has lost 8.28%.
Small- and mid-size businesses in the S Fund lost 8.01% in February, bringing its 2020 losses to 8.58%. The I Fund, which is made up of international investments, fell 7.74% last month. So far this year, the I Fund has lost 10.25%.
The fixed income bonds in the F Fund gained 1.82% last month, bringing its gains this year to 3.77%. And the G Fund, which is made up of government securities, grew 0.13% in February. So far in 2020, the G Fund has gained 0.30%.
All of the TSP’s lifecycle (L) funds ended February in the red. The L Income Fund, designed for participants already making withdrawals, fell 1.52%; L 2020, 1.76%; L 2030, 4.65%; L 2040, 5.58%; and L 2050, 6.39%.
So far this year, the L Income Fund lost 1.51%; L 2020, 1.77%; L 2030, 5.08%; L 2040, 6.14%; and L 2050, 7.06%.”
Clearly COVID-19 has affected the markets, with little clarity this early in the advent of the disease as to if/when the market will rebound. Almost ten years of remarkable growth and a record decline in unemployment was bound to slow if not reverse sooner or later. Many media reports predicted a slowdown later this year or early next. As the Coronavirus spreads here and abroad, the alarms will continue, however, steady as you go…
… which is probably good advice in every aspect of your life right now!
The Volcker Alliance is excited to announce an expansion of its Government-to-University Initiative (G2U) with the launch of two new G2U Regional Councils in Los Angeles, California, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. G2U is an innovative approach to addressing critical governance challenges by building structured regional networks of governments and universities. The initiative aims to catalyze a robust local marketplace that can sustainably connect governments’ hiring and research needs with local university capacity.
To anchor these efforts, the Volcker Alliance is partnering with the Southern California Association of Governments in Los Angeles, and Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy and Metro21: Smart Cities Institute in Pittsburgh. These new sites will build upon the success of the pilot G2U Coalition in Kansas City led by the Mid-America Regional Council, which will celebrate its one-year anniversary with its first regionwide Coalition Convening on April 21.
Throughout 2020, the Volcker Alliance will work to build connections within the growing cohort of Regional Councils and will explore opportunities to expand the G2U network further. Please email G2U@volckeralliance.org
The Robertson Foundation for Government is a proud sponsor of the Government-to-University Initiative.
On February 26, 2020, the National Academy of Public Administration hosted a roundtable centered on the Grand Challenge, “Connecting Individuals to Meaningful Work.” The participants discussed how government and civil society must adapt to suit the future of work, and the demands of the workforce of tomorrow.
The State Department is receiving a lot of attention these days. In November, career foreign service officers Marie Yovanovitch, William Taylor, George Kent and David Holmes were in the national spotlight during the House hearings on the impeachment of President Trump in relation to his dealings with Ukraine. These previously little known State Department officials, two of whom have since left their positions, received daily press coverage for several weeks.
Two recent books provide deeper insight into the work of the State Department and the life of career foreign service officers. In his memoir The Back Channel: A Memoir of American Diplomacy and The Case for Its Renewal, William J. Burns recounts his 33-year career in the department from 1981 to 2014. And in The Ambassadors: America’s Diplomats on the Front Lines, Paul Richter discusses the experience and multiple assignments of four ambassadors in the Middle East from 2001 to 2017: Ryan Crocker, Robert Ford, Anne Patterson and Chris Stevens.
Both books are highly informative about what government actually does on the front lines. (It would be worthwhile to have similar books describing the jobs of public servants in other departments and agencies.) Burns describes diplomats as harnessing all the tools of American statecraft “from the soft power of ideas, culture and public diplomacy, to economic incentives and sanctions, intelligence-gathering and covert actions, and military assistance and the threat of force—to achieve policy aims. Diplomats are classic organizers, whether in mobilizing the levers of American influence, shaping international alliances, or bridging divides with adversaries.”
Nominations are now open for the 2020 Government Executive Government Hall of Fame awards.
The Government Hall of Fame is designed for those who have reached a high pinnacle of success during their careers in civil service. The Hall of Fame honors the best of the best: those who have demonstrated sustained achievement and unparalleled dedication to public service throughout their careers. The Hall of Fame Inductees have done much more than achieved a singular accomplishment—they have made historic progress in changing government for the better, and their influence will live on for generations. Each year a new class of inductees will be added to this group’s elite membership.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Annie Bruce at abruce@govexec.com.
A watchdog reported on Tuesday that although the State Department says it is committed to improving racial and gender representation in its workforce, department leaders have failed to analyze career promotion data to adequately understand barriers women and minorities face.
The Government Accountability Office analyzed data for over 40,000 employees who worked at the department from 2002 to 2018 and found “uneven progress” in improving diversity. The total proportion of racial and ethnic minorities in full-time, permanent positions increased from 28% in fiscal 2002 to 32% in fiscal 2018 with variations among specific races and ethnicities. Over the same period, the number of women at the agency decreased slightly from 44% in 2002 to 43% in 2018. Additionally, with few exceptions, whites and men had the highest promotion rates and held the majority of leadership positions among the career service and foreign service.
“According to State, to represent the United States to the world, the agency must have a workforce that reflects the rich composition of its citizenry. State has implemented several plans, activities, and initiatives to improve diversity and representation throughout the ranks of its workforce,” the report said. “However, longstanding diversity issues persist at the agency, such as underrepresentation of racial or ethnic minorities and women in the senior ranks” and it “may have an incomplete picture of issues affecting diversity in its workforce” with its current annual reporting.
Watch Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, lead a discussion on the public release of a new GAO report titled “State Department: Additional Steps are Needed to Identify Potential Barriers to Diversity.”
Editor’s note: The following post first appeared on the IBM Center for The Business of Government website.
Many governments around the world seek ways to serve their constituents and carry out their missions more effectively and with greater efficiency. This imperative takes on even greater import as emerging technology and business paradigms raise expectations from the public and enable new channels of collaboration between government and industry. More specifically, the U.S. government has enormous unfunded needs to modernize administrative processes, workforce skills, and technologies.
These demands continue to grow in an environment of public sector resource constraints, which could be alleviated though greater leverage of private sector investment, technology, and expertise. But capital markets that enable companies to finance critical needs generally do not address public sector work – one set of such markets, state and municipal bond issuances do not have an analog at the national level. Private investment and public-private partnerships can help to supplement government funding sources, and can be a source for innovation and expertise.
Addressing these and other modernization challenges requires a long-term vision for increasing investment in public goals, optimizing current budget and procurement processes to deploy greater engagement with the private sector consistent with sound use of public funds, and a strategy to achieve this change in practical increments over time. As public sector funding constraints continue to be impacted by rising deficits and debt, agencies can benefit from pathways for the private sector to invest capital in modernizing government operations, and from processes for making the most effective use of public and private investment dollars over time.
To address these challenges, the IBM Center for The Business of Government and the Shared Services Leadership Coalition (SSLC) have released a new report, Mobilizing Capital Investment to Modernize Government. Three former leaders in government – Ed DeSeve with Brookings Executive Education, Steve Redburn with George Washington University, and Ken Buck with the University of Virginia — identify strategies for Federal agencies on how to incentivize private sector capital investment.
The authors also discuss options and recommendations for revising budget and acquisition processes that have tended to limit systematic engagement with industry around investment, such as with shared services; and to discourage longer-term capital planning by government. At the same time, the report makes clear how such recommendations can be done consistent with important safeguards in appropriations, budget scoring, and procurement processes—safeguards rooted in longstanding law and policy.
This report was informed by the insights at a September 2019 Roundtable discussion co-hosted by the IBM Center and SSLC, which that addressed how investment, budgeting, and procurement strategies might help government meet its capital challenges. Participants include current and former senior officials from OMB, agencies, congress, academia, and industry, and their insights pointed out ways to meet these challenges more effectively — exploring options for adopting “outside-in” solutions that draw on private sector resources, expertise, and technology to bolster public spending, as well as how to capitalize on current budget and procurement flexibilities.
The Roundtable and research from the authors also reflected on how the Federal Government has engaged in initiatives to address this imperative over the past several decades. OMB has worked with agencies to develop several shared services initiatives that seek to apply commercial best practices across government; numerous innovations in acquisition have been authorized and implemented; industry has joined in multiple forms of public-private partnerships modeled on similar collaborative efforts in state and local governments. And recent budget innovations have brought flexible investment approaches, such as the Technology Modernization Fund.
The authors drew on this experience and discussion to identify several findings regarding current budgetary and procurement practices that affect the ability of the federal government to attract and deploy private capital in support of national policy objectives, including:
The report also outlines a set of actions that could be taken both now and in the future, including ways to incentivize private sector investment and public sector agility as well as reforms in federal budgeting and procurement. These actions take the form of 10 near and long-term recommendations for OMB, GSA, Congress, and stakeholders and partners.
We hope that this report helps government understand how best to engage with private sector partners in achieving its modernization goals effectively, efficiently, and consistent with integrity for taxpayer dollars .
For government to carry out missions ranging from defending against cyberattacks to promoting health and wellness for all Americans, agencies need the absolute best leaders at the helm.
The Excellence in Government Fellows program is the premier leadership development course for federal employees at the GS-14 to GS-15 levels. For more than 30 years, EIG has trained federal employees on the skills and strategies they need to lead. Empowered by their experience, our graduates go on to develop and implement innovative solutions to address the federal government’s biggest challenges and improve their agencies’ effectiveness.
Applications due by April 3.
The Theodore Roosevelt Government Leadership Awards (The Teddies) honor an all-star team of distinguished federal officials and industry leaders for outstanding achievement in delivering on government’s promise to serve the American people. Each year two winners will be chosen in the Visionaries, Directors, Pathfinders, Defenders and Partners categories for demonstrated success in their work over a given year. The Visionaries, Directors, Pathfinders and Defenders categories are for federal government and military leaders. The Partners category is for non-government partners.
Nominations are open now through 11:59 PM on Friday, March 13.
