General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: It wasn't until Pham was diagnosed with Ebola that health officials decided [View all]Shemp Howard
(889 posts)From local government on up, there is no management accountability. If something doesn't get done today, well, just do it next week. If something doesn't get done at all, hide that fact. Or find some low-level employee to blame.
With rare exceptions, government managers are never held accountable. In other words, they never feel any pain for mistakes made on their watch.
And that makes people lazy and complacent. It's a natural reflex.
The same thing occurs in many corporations. However, this is usually not true in the military. An officer who blunders is usually not fired, but his/her career is over. Done. No more promotions. Just a transfer to a humiliating desk job. No more prestigious commands. And that keeps officers motivated, motivated to stay on top of every situation.
The trick here is how to get that philosophy into civilian government, without causing undo stress on everyone involved.