East Baton Rouge Parish Library

If we can put a man on the moon--, getting big things done in government, William D. Eggers, John O'Leary

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

illustrations

index present

non fiction

If we can put a man on the moon--

bibliography

354900847

William D. Eggers, John O'Leary

getting big things done in government

Eggers, an author and columnist who works in global research for a public-sector industry practice, and O'Leary (Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard Kennedy School), who has worked in the Massachusetts state government, argue that if the US can put a man on the moon, then the government can achieve anything, and that the difference between success and failure is in policy execution. Using a systems perspective, they review about 75 successful and failed government undertakings in the US and abroad to show the steps it takes to successfully bring a large, important public initiative from an idea to results, including lessons learned from policy initiatives, reform, regulation, capital projects, creating new institutions, process and IT initiatives improvement, peacekeeping and defense, and disaster and crisis response like the Challenger and Columbia tragedies, California's electricity reform, immigration reform, the wars on poverty and inflation, wars in Iraq and Vietnam, the Bay of Pigs fiasco, Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, and the Marshall Plan, and patterns and characteristics of success. Annotation ♭2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

The seven deadly traps on the journey to success: a fresh look at how big things get done in a democracy -- The Tolstoy trap: you'll see it when you believe it : how to find, test, and nurture good ideas -- The design-free design trap : Blueprint Bootcamp : how the design phase can wreak havoc during implementation -- The Stargate trap: the space between possibility and reality ; the distortion effect at the moment of democratic commitment -- The overconfidence trap : fear, risk, and the best-laid plans : how embracing the risk of failure maximizes the likelihood of success -- The Sisyphus trap : the rock, the hill, and you : how the interplay between systems and people generates results -- The complacency trap : changing times : how the way things are keeps us from seeing what could be -- The Silo trap : the walls between us : working better together by seeing the big picture -- Creating a better future : the execution mindset -- A politician and a bureaucrat show us how we can rekindle the spirit of democracy