Implementing Implementation

Government has an implementation crisis. The idea that laws are passed, and magically turn into services everyone can access easily, is a fiction. There's a "murky middle" between policy and implementation, made worse by the ever-increasing complexity of legislation. And the public service is left to pick up the pieces. Ironically, the people who know best how to fix these problems are those closest to the frontlines, but are least likely to influence policy. Instead, they're told to do what they're told.

In Recoding America, Jennifer Pahlka offers an unprecedented glimpse into the inner workings of the public sector. Drawing from years in government and civic tech, she provides clear examples of heroism in the face of dysfunction, and a bold call for rethinking how governments can overcome the crisis. In this FWD50 keynote, she'll talk about implementing implementation itself. Join Jen and find out how digital changes both the crisis and how we can address it—and what implementers can do to push back against lawmakers and restore sanity to the public service.