While the presidential race is still just ramping up, the NAPA is partnering with the American Society for Public Administration to advise campaigns and candidates on effective management improvement techniques and to identify potential management challenges.
The Presidential Transition 2016 initiative will be led jointly by Ed DeSeve, a former official during the Obama and Clinton Administrations, and David Chu, a former official during the Reagan and both Bush Administrations.
"Good management is good politics," said DeSeve. "Having the candidates prepared day one to take on the challenges of implementing policies is essential to a smooth transition."
The NAPA and the ASPA will release studies, papers and other content that showcase management techniques, solutions for problems and other issues as the presidential campaign continues.
While the area might be low on a candidates list, having good management in place can help solve bigger problems later on in an administration, according to Chu.
"Management—how you implement a program—may not be the first issue on which government leaders focus when announcing how they'll deal with a problem, but it is essential if the public's expectations of its government are to have any chance of fulfillment," said Chu.
DeSeve said the new effort will not involve itself in politics but will instead focus on management challenges that would help create a more effective government. The effort will also help a newly elected president efficiently appoint the people needed to get underway immediately, he said.
The groups will be meeting with as many candidates as possible to provide information and to educate staffers about transition-related issues, such as quickly appointing people to agency posts.
"We think that good management is good politics and we think that good management is the key to implementing good policy," DeSeve said.
