Get the government we need instead of attacking what we have

By Jim Chrisinger

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There's an overlooked opportunity to seize in the way we “do government.” The warring “less government” and “more government” factions could find some common ground, perish the thought.

Couldn't we agree that however much government we have should be better government, government that squeezes the most public value from each tax dollar?

Experiments by courageous leaders from both parties across the country over the last

30 years, including Iowa Governors Terry Branstad and Tom Vilsack, have shown ways to use innovation and entrepreneurial principles to push government beyond the bureaucratic model.

Post-bureaucratic government starts with basics, asking the people what's most important to them. Then, leaders prioritize and fund what works best with the dollars available.

Leaders ask for feedback from citizens as they interact with government. They set goals, like reducing the time it takes to get a business permit, and then achieve them or the permit seeker, for example, doesn't have to pay the fee.

Governments act entrepreneurially when they empower employees to waive rules that get in the way of producing results. They replace one-size-fits-all regulation.

Post-bureaucratic leaders realize government cannot and should not try to do it all. They join with the non-profit and private sectors and other governments to “coproduce” better results with fewer tax dollars. They get better deals by opening government services to competition. They also reward government work units that innovate and achieve excellent results.

In the late '90s, the Branstad administration drove a better bargain for taxpayers by competitively sourcing the Department of Transportation's paint-striping work. The Vilsack administration created its last two budgets by requiring state agencies to compete for resources on the basis of who could deliver better results per dollar toward Iowans' priorities.

While these practices sound like common sense, it's surprising how infrequently they steer government today. Why is that?

Bureaucracy's web of rules is what we know. The most important thing in bureaucracies is following those rules, not performance and efficiency.

By the way, don't blame government employees for bureaucratic government. Most of them are just as frustrated as you are. Despite that, many in government now accomplish more with less every day.

But we could do so much better. And you can help. The next time a political candidate asks you for a check and your vote, tell them they can't have either without a commitment to more entrepreneurial, post-bureaucratic government.

Jim Chrisinger, of Cottage Grove, Minn., held management positions in Iowa state government from 1996 to 2006. He now consults and writes on government transformation. Comments: jim@psg.us