Without a doubt, the early twenty-first century is both a stressful and an exciting time to be a government employee. The constant fear of gotcha journalism, the increased centralization of bureaucracy, as well as the perpetually rising expectations of citizens and taxpayers mean that many public servants often work under conditions that many would find too exhausting and too draining to tolerate. This chapter’s outline for how this entire world could (or will) shift could be seen as either liberating or completely overwhelming. Happily and sadly, it will be a little bit of both. I believe that the four shifts I shared here are inevitable. Enabled by technology and demanded by the public, the way governments operate will change.
The good news is that this transition need not be as painful as many believe, and it carries with it enormous opportunities for improving the mission of government. I once remember hearing a story about when computers were introduced into a government department. At first, people ignored them; then, when only secretaries knew how to use them, they feared them and lobbied against them. Today, however, if you walk into a government department and suggest removing all the computers, every public servant will insist you are crazy. Today we think networks in government, long tails of public policy, gift economies, and the death of objectivity can all be either ignored or fought against. Neither is a viable strategy. Governments need to be ready to experiment and embrace these shifts. And it can be a shift. In this chapter, I outlined achievable and incremental actions governments can and are taking. Indeed, in my experience, in every government there are individuals or groups that are already experimenting and innovating. This change is not beyond our capacity; indeed, in many cases the shift has already begun.