1. HPO Change Conference May 28, 2002
Presentation by: Robert J. O’Neill, Jr., President National Academy of Public Administration

2. National Academy of Public Administration
Academy’s Vision: Make government work and work for all
Founded 1967
Chartered by Congress
500 elected Fellows

3. National Academy of Public Administration
Improve the performance of government institutions
at all levels
Center for Improving Government Performance
Center for Human Resources Management
International
eGovernance
Center for Local and State Solutions
Center for the Economy and the Environment
Management Studies

4. National Academy of Public Administration Compelling Case For Change
Boundaries are Increasingly Irrelevant
Governmental
Organizational
Blurring of Sectors
Merging Technologies
Demographics
Velocity of Change

5. National Academy of Public Administration
“It is futile…to try to ignore the changes
and to pretend that tomorrow will be like
yesterday, only more so…” and that,
“The first policy – and the foundation of
all others – is to abandon yesterday.”
Peter F. Drucker

6. National Academy of Public Administration
President’s Management Agenda
Compliance tool or lever of change?

8. What caused other efforts to fail? Who can veto? Can anyone say yes?
National Academy of Public Administration Major Questions for Leadership
What were the critical success factors in previous successful change efforts?
What caused other efforts to fail?
Are you prepared to take on the obstacles?
Who can veto? Can anyone say yes?
What is the organization’s risk profile?

9. What had created a window of opportunity? How long might it last?
National Academy of Public Administration Major Questions for Leadership
What had created a window of opportunity?
How long might it last?
What is the upside for stakeholders?
What will be the principle levers of change?

10. National Academy of Public Administration
“One of the keys to successful leadership is the refusal to believe that any business model, however sound and well crafted, is ever good enough to run on autopilot.”
Extreme Management

11. National Academy of Public Administration
Lessons Learned
Committed leadership is a prerequisite
Shared values are important
Build ownership in both the journey and the destination
Communicate, engage and be visible
Timing is everything
Learn to tolerate different paces

12. National Academy of Public Administration
Lessons Learned
Challenge the support system
Invest in the champions
Develop strategy for stragglers
Don’t get caught up in techniques
Push your risk profile
Actively manage expectations
Create an upside
Focus on the long haul – culture of innovation and adaptability

13. National Academy of Public Administration
IF PERFORMANCE
MATTERS, THEN
LEADERSHIP AND
MANAGEMENT COUNT

14. National Academy of Public Administration
“Vision without execution is called hallucination”
Steve Case

15. National Academy of Public Administration
“It must be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to plan, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to manage, than the creation of a new system. For the initiation has the enmity of all who would profit by preservation of the old institutions and merely luke warm defenders in those would would gain by the new ones.”
Machiavelli – 1513