Re-engineering public services

When I started work as a management consultant in the early 90s. Business Process Redesign (BPR) was the buzz of the day. As an instinctive contrarian, I was rather skeptical of this sudden need by every American company to apply BPR, like one adopts a religion. I have to say, though, that as I watched stock performances and productivity go up through the early 21st century, the savvy use of new technology, BPR, and the globalization of markets were the main engines that came to mind. I believe BPR was an enabler, that allowed companies to capitalize swiftly on new technologies and new markets and maximize the value from these opportunities.

Now, as the federal government takes over more and more previously private services, and as our local Mass government gets embroiled in a never-ending series of scandals; raising taxes, cutting services, and increasing every possible user fee, one thing cries out: the government needs BPR. As we give the government ever more influence over critical services in our lives, let's make sure it has the operational capacity to deliver them.

I'm not aware of the government version of Business Process Redesign, but I'm sure someone must have developed it. Busy days ahead for those companies!