Getting Lost in Big Government

Conservatives hate big government, and since I now work for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts I can see why. The rigor and demands of the corporate world are no where to be found in this large bureaucracy. Once you get down below the immediate offices of the elected officials you are left with largely a great deal of people who are never pushed. People who are never given real deadlines and who know their job will always be there barring a racial or sexual misconduct. Lack of a work ethic and of motivation are accepted as the status quo and largely because of that employee productivity slows within weeks of being hired.

Conservatives (and most Americans) blame the employee; the reason for the lack of productivity is found in the employees themselves, because of that missing will. Yet who would be able to do that job with anymore will or determination? Possibly an intern like myself who is looking for that recommendation and that leg up, but for those who work here as a career there is no leg up, there are no bonuses, there are no real upgrades or promotions (moving from scanning assistant to data entry assistant is a change in scenery, one cubicle to another).

The fault does not fall at the will of the employee but at the feet of the elected officials who do not demand excellence of their employees. If you want government to match business in productivity and efficiency then you must run it like a business. Hand out bonuses and promotions to those who deserve them and fire those that refuse to work.

Demanding that your employees try is only half the problem, the other half is making them want to come to work. Give them some independence and responsibility, make them feel important, make them feel like they are apart of something greater. Not just a person in a cubicle but an asset to the agency that has ideas and solutions.

But as long as we have this mindset that government can never be like business and will always be bloated and ineffective then we will only continue to hamstring ourselves and the future of this country.

I will continue to touch on this subject in more detail as this internship continues.