So we made it...

We should always strive to learn from challenges to avoid mistakes and repeat successes in the future. This concept is called "continuous learning" in mature corporations.

What did we, as the American consumer, learn throughout the last month about the divisive nature of the Congressional Budget?

What led us to succeed in reaching an agreement last night?

How would a shutdown affect you?

Share your perspective on how the shutdown would affect you - the American consumer.

The Customer is Always Right

A Citizen’s Relationship to Government

What is a citizen’s relationship to his/her government? In the U.S. we are the government, represented by elected officials. We, as a people, agree to abide by the government that serves our collective needs. This concept is as old as government itself. Across time and cultures, political philosophers from Plato to Thoreau refined this concept termed the Social Contract.

In our Social Contract we forego individual “freedom” (or “anarchy” for lack of a better term) for collective protection against external and internal threats. This expectation later grew beyond defense and law enforcement to include other governmental functions, services, and entitlements.

The Necessary Monopoly

In the private sector, when a service or product is only available from one corporation, that corporation has a monopoly. Sometimes that monopoly is necessary because economy of scale makes that service as cheap as possible. That lack of competition typically has a negative impact on quality and customer service. Comparably, the Federal government has a necessary monopoly on the services it provides its citizens.  

A Customer’s Relationship to Business

Americans are customers to the Federal government. We pay taxes and abide by federal laws in return for national services. Using this analogy, our interactive blog will explore how adopting private sector best practices can improve services and reduce costs – ultimately benefitting us – the American consumer! 

If the Federal Government Were a Business...

The past two years have brought waves of political change and outcry- first with the Obama Administration and second with the Tea Party’s fiscal conservatives in Congress. Both movements, while diverse in partisanship, are common in demands for responsible, professional governance. Facing a daunting national debt and declining quality of life, Americans demand a political system that serves their needs without accumulating debt.

Improving service quality and reducing costs are second nature to businesses; Fortune 500 companies and small proprietorships alike. Businesses are incentivized to produce a profit. The public sector, by contrast, has no such measurable goal or motivating incentive. A lack of proper incentives causes major performance issues. Using an innovative, unconstrained vision Uncle Sam Inc.: Serving the American Consumer compares the federal government to a business entity in order to overcome incentive issues and develop governance solutions.

This open forum will redefine how the electorate, lawmakers, and administrators interact to produce value, learning lessons from the world's most successful businesses. In doing so, we will confront 6 primary challenges:

·         Define Scope

·         Raise Revenue

·         Minimize Costs

·         Assign Single-Point Responsibility

·         Solve New Challenges with Existing Organizations

·         Exceed Customer Expectations

View the "challenge pages" for more information.