Think Inside the Box- Simple Ways to Improve Federal Government Operations

Think Inside the Box presents real, tangible things that senior leaders in the Federal Government can do to drive improvement. "The Box" refers to the intricate web of rules, regulations, statute, protocols, norms, political dynamics and cultural elements within the Federal Government. Each installment of Inside the Box presents one thing that individuals and teams within the government can focus on to drive improvements. These improvements can be implemented without major change or "reform". While they may require some work and creativity, they are things that you can do today. These are simple (but perhaps not easy) things to do. They don't require moving heaven and earth, but they do require the will to improve and the courage to have difficult discussions and ask hard questions. If you are a federal leader who believes in making government work better, Think Inside the Box is for you.

In this installment-Understanding "The Box"

“The Box” refers to the space you have for decision-making and execution in your job as a leader in the Federal Government. The problem with "the box" is that its size can be easily misunderstood and misinterpreted. When this happens it can make getting things done unnecessarily cumbersome. Fortunately, there are ways to address this and discover opportunities to be more nimble and effective, while still being fully compliant with the rules.

Think about your daily commute to work, or a weekend car trip. When you drive you are aware of a number of ‘boundaries’ (physical and otherwise). There are painted lines, medians, jersey walls, guardrails, traffic signals, other cars and speed limits. All of these things work together to create the (figurative) box within which you operate your car. Imagine that your daily commute takes you on a highway that you know to be heavily monitored by police for speeders. The speed limit on this highway is 55 miles per hour. If you want to drive to work on this route with the lowest risk of getting a ticket, what do you do? Do you drive 50 MPH? 45MPH? Of course you don’t- because you understand that the rule (the posted speed limit) is 55 MPH. So you drive 55, and follow all of the other rules. 

On the road, you understand the box. And you understand that you don't lower your risk of getting a ticket by driving below the speed limit. Because compliance with the rules is critical- over compliance is not! 

Knowing the real size of the box you are operating in is an important factor in mission operations and mission support. 

Not understanding the actual size of the box is a real problem in government. It’s tempting to fall into the belief that by applying the most conservative possible interpretation of rules we are somehow reducing risk. This is as true as the idea that by driving 50 in a 55 zone we reduce the likelihood of getting a speeding ticket. If the rule is 55- drive 55. It’s the rule for a reason. 

Here’s an example- I was working with a senior executive at a federal agency who wanted to do a cultural assessment of their organization. Part of conducting the assessment included getting direct feedback from employees, customers and stakeholders, some of whom were not on the organization’s computer network. They wanted to field a couple of different surveys that would allow these various groups to provide feedback on an ongoing basis. They identified a vendor who had a very robust web-based platform and the capability to design and field the surveys. The cost was about $2,400 for the first year, which included the initial set up, unlimited responses to all the surveys, and full access to all the analytic tools to view and work with the data through the web interface. The cost in year two, and subsequent years would be $1,800 per year, as part of the year one cost included the survey design work. At this price it was a no-brainer. Conveniently, this person had a government purchase card with a $2,500 threshold for purchases of goods and services. So this part of the cultural assessment could be accomplished smoothly, quickly and in a very affordable way….. so I thought. What happened next was interesting. The senior executive told me that they would need to run this purchase through the contracting shop because, “it’s too close to the threshold. People might perceive the vendor priced it that way just to allow me to use my GPC.”

So in this case the purchase would have been fully compliant with the purchase card rules- it was inside the box. But the perception that it was “too close” to the boundaries of the rules resulted in an unnecessary contracting process which ultimately cost the government more time and expense. The proximity to the edge of the box caused the person to interpret the rules incorrectly. 

This is a simplistic example but it illustrates an important point- use the entire box! You won’t get a speeding ticket for driving 55 in a 55 zone, and you won’t get in trouble for making a legitimate purchase that is within the allowed threshold. So operate within the rules. Be fully compliant..... and- work to the absolute limits of the box as often as you possibly can.  

Take Action- Understand “The Box”

Here are some things to do to operate more efficiently and still be fully compliant with all the rules:

1. Understand “The Box”
2. Help others understand "The Box"
3. Ask questions
4. Don't make it about "risk"
5. Offer top cover

Understand “The Box”

You’ve got to know the real size of the box you are working in/constrained by. Do this by reading the rules and discussing them with people. Have conversations with people inside and outside of your own agency. You may find that other people around government have lived these challenges already and have done the work to understand the rules and formulate solutions that work. Getting multiple opinions can also help. Have the same discussions with more than one person. Find out what other people are doing and how they interpret and work within the rules to get things done. 

Help others understand “The Box”

With a complete understanding of the rules, share what you know with other people. Listen for opportunities to do this. When you hear someone expressing concern or frustration with perceived constraints take a few minutes to talk to them about it. In doing so you may find that they are incorrectly interpreting the size of the box and you may be able to help them understand how they can work more effectively within the rules.   If you have an epiphany about how you can work inside the box on a particular issue, do a training or a brown bag and let other people know what you know.

Ask Questions

As you brainstorm and problem solve in your agency and within your work group, ask yourself and others, “Are we interpreting policy, rules and statutes accurately?” “Are we imposing upon ourselves restrictions that are not really part of the rules?” “How are other agencies, directorates or departments doing this?”

Don't make it about "Risk"

This is NOT a risk issue. "Risk" is a four-letter red herring. Don't let this turn into a "risk-taking" discussion. Avoid questions like, "where can we afford to take more risk?" or "why are we so risk averse here?" Being fully compliant with the rules as you execute the important business of government is about as risky as driving 55 in a 55 MPH speed zone. If someone brings up "risk" quickly remind them that what we are talking about is how to be as effective as possible by clearly understanding and working within the limitations of the existing rules.

Offer top cover

As the leader you are in a position to empower people to take full advantage of the flexibilities that are possible within the boundaries of the rules. Find opportunities to let your team do this. Encourage them to push all the way to the limits of the box. Commit to them that if there is any blowback it will be on you. Put this in writing in advance if you are brave enough. If you've done your homework and are confident that you are operating within the rules you should be able to have their back. Encourage them to drive 55- and model the behavior yourself.

Following the rules in government is incredibly important. Without robust rules, and people who are deeply committed to abiding by them, our entire system would be in jeopardy. But the rules are not there to hamper government operations and there are often ways to be fully compliant and effective at the same time. By understanding "the box" more clearly, and applying some creative and collaborative problem-solving, your entire organization can achieve higher levels of performance and drive better government.

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See last weeks Think Inside the Box on- Getting Unstuck