Engaging Government Employees

CHAPTER 4

______________

The Special Case of Public Service and How This Affects Engagement and Efforts to Improve It

I began this book by emphasizing that this is a particularly tough time to work in government. Persistent attacks on government can’t help but affect the morale and engagement of public-sector employees. Despite well-publicized private-sector fiascos such as Enron, the BP oil spill, and the subprime mortgage meltdown, we don’t see similar attacks on rank-and-file private-sector employees.

I’ve worked in or with government for almost 40 years, at federal, state, and local levels, and now at a major public university—the University of Wisconsin. I’ve devoted my career to public service because I believe in government and the ability ...