If you have worked for or with government organisations you may have noticed strange and counter-intuitive behavior.
You may have even become frustrated and angry and the seemingly self-defeating decisions, non-decisions and lack of focus.
There is a very simple principle at work that can explain much of what you’ve seen.
Government organisations are not trying to do things well, they are trying to avoid disaster.
It’s that simple.
The consequences of things being done poorly are very small, the consequences of a disaster are huge.
People’s careers are not curtailed because things took longer than expected or because they were more expensive than expected.
People’s careers are curtailed when a bad news story gets into the media.
What’s the worst thing you can do in government work ? Embarrass the Minister!
Any sustained period of media reporting of a government bureaucratic failure will result in the pouring of millions and often billions of dollars into the area, new technology,
new consultants, new whatever-it-takes to make the problem go away.
It’s avoiding these front page disasters that is the number #1 priority, and if someone can be convinced that another 18 months of development or another $350k a year consultant is going to reduce the risk, even slightly, it’s worth it.
If you are arguing for greater agility, skipping bureaucratic processes, reducing meetings and not consulting every group and his dog before proceeding, you may feel like you are fighting for a better outcome but what you are seen to be doing is removing the checks and balances that help avoid disaster.