Political vs. Career Leaders in

GovernmentJessica Harrington

July 2, 2015

Size of Government

• There are between 3,000 and 4,000 political appointees in the federal government. • Of these, approximately 1,000 are appointed by

the President and require Senate confirmation.

• There are approximately 2.6 Million Federal Civilian Employees.

http://www.publicfinanceinternational.org/news/2012/04/political-appointees-american-style (2012)

Causes of Friction

• Primary Causes of Friction• Agency Type• Misinformation• Different roles and skills • Battle for Control

Agency Type and Executive Leadership

Can You Observe the Outcomes of the Agency’s Action?

Can you Observe the Outputs of the Agency?

Yes No

Yes Production Agencies(SSA)

Procedural Agencies(DOD During Peace)

No Craft Agencies (DOD During War)

Coping Agencies (State Department)

Outcomes: How the actions of the agency affect the United States or world.Outputs: What the agency personnel do all day.

“Myths”

• Career civil servants only care about keeping their job.

• Political Appointees are just partisan hacks.

• Civil Servants only care about increasing their budget.

• Political appointees are incompetent.

• Civil Servants don’t take direction well.

Advice for Political Appointee

• Learn the history of the agency.

• Don’t address internal agency management• Focus on “big picture” things like strategy,

budgeting, and the agency’s relationships with interest groups.

• Develop relationships with civil servants early.

• Recognize the strengths of the civil servants.

Advice for Civil Servants

• Keep in mind Political Appointees are generally very well educated.

• Recognize the strengths appointees brings to the agency.

• Develop relationships with appointees early.

• Forgive appointees for early mistakes.

• Recognize the challenging position appointees are in.

• Understand your place in the system.

Working Together

• “Career public servants and political appointees are here to stay, and they must work well together if government is to succeed. An effective collaboration starts with recognizing that the negative stereotypes each has about the other are mostly wrong. Beyond that, political appointees must approach their career counterparts with respect, seek to understand their agencies, build partnerships, and focus on what appointees do best – craft overall strategy and manage externally. Career officials must seek to understand and appreciate the appointee’s view of the world, etend a helping hand, keep their organization in working order, and be tolerant of initial appointee missteps.” – “Career-political relationships: Going Beyond a Government of Strangers” by Robert Maranto

Sources

• “Beyond a Government of Strangers: How Career Executives and Political Appointees Can Turn Conflict to Cooperation” by Robert Maranto

• “A Government of Strangers: Executive Politics in Washington” by Hugh Heclo

• “A Trusted Leader: Building the Relationships that Make Government Work” edited by Terry Newell, Grant Reeher, and Peter Ronayne

Questions?