Governments Should Be Effective, Not Efficient

President-elect Donald Trump’s recently announced Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by business leaders Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, is creating ripples in Washington. While the idea that the sprawling federal government bureaucracy is in need of a shake-up may be appealing to many Americans, efficiency — the essence of capitalism — might not be the right approach for the public sector. The author, who runs a program at Oxford for senior business leaders looking to apply themselves to improve the practice of government, makes three observations about business leaders who have successfully made the transition to become effective public-sector leaders. First, they cultivate a practice of open engagement, because they know that unlike a business, a government can’t choose its customers; it must serve all people. Second, they adopt an experimental mindset, using incremental innovation and learning to advance policy, because they know that a government cannot afford to fail.  And third is they recognize that to be successful in government, you create value and you leave its gains behind for others, as opposed to being successful in business, where you create value and capture its gains.