Government at Work : Best Practices and Model Programs

This book presents persuasive arguments in support of public service and those who

work within it. Clearly, some services should come under government control: public safety, highways, armed and emergency service, water, sewage, parks, schools. Others, however, are operating in answer to problems that society fails to solve. The public sector requires complex problem-solving processes - never simple solutions - and, despite the negative image imprinted on the public consciousness, Government at Work shows how so-called bureaucrats do a difficult job well.

Marc Holzer and Kathe Callahan compile evidence that creativity, productivity and

excellence are not strangers to government programmes. The publ

This book presents persuasive arguments in support of public service and those who work within it. The authors argue that some services are only appropriate to government control: public safety, highways, armed and emergency services, parks, and public schools. Other services are operated/undertaken by government in response to problems that society and the private sector have failed to solve: housing, transportation, clean air and water, and so on. In both instances, the public sector requires complex problem-solving processesùnever simple solutionsùand, despite the negative images of (bumbling) bureaucrats imprinted on the public consciousness, Government at Work shows how public servants do difficult jobs well. Marc Holzer and Kathe Callahan compile evidence that creativity, productivity, and excellence are not strangers to, but often characteristic of, government programs. The public sectorÆs innovative problem-solving should be exploited in the attack on complex problems as they emerge in our society.