The World is Peter Schuck’s Oyster – Meet Our Keynote

GovLoop’s 4th Annual Government Innovators Virtual Summit is just a few weeks away! We wanted to take this time to introduce our keynote speaker, the incredible Peter Schuck, who was a guest star on Comedy Central’s Daily Show (May, 2014). The free summit will be on April 22nd, starting at 10 AM ET — be sure to check out the schedule and register so you can attend up to 5 trainings (and earn up to 5 CPE credits), download over 200+ resources and network with your government peers.

Peter Schuck is one of those scholars whose bio will make your jaw drop. With a B.A. from Cornell, J.D. and M.A. from Harvard, LL.M. from NYU, he now serves as Deputy Dean at Yale Law School. This guy has some serious credentials. Even more commendable, Schuck has dedicated his life to spreading knowledge not only to his students, but also to the American government.

Schuck has several published books that attempt to solve key problems in the government including;

• Targeting in Social Programs: Avoiding Bad Bets, Removing Bad Apples;
• Mediations of a Militant Moderate: Cool Views on Hot Topics;
• Foundations of Administrative Law;
• Diversity in America: Keeping Government at a Safe Distance;
• The Limits of Law: Essays on Democratic Governance; and his latest, Why Government Fails so Often and How We Can Do Better.

The previous Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare will base his keynote speech, “How to Hurdle Success,” off the ideas presented in his latest book. Schuck addresses an increasingly puzzling paradox in America- as the government attempts to take on more tasks, the public grows less confident in their leader’s ability to actually accomplish anything significant. But what is the government supposed to do as problems become more detrimental and the cries for support from the public grow louder every day?

Schuck’s conclusion: the government has stretched its limited resources beyond its commitments. He reiterates that big government is here to stay and any efforts to reverse this trend will fail. The problems that affect our country are deeply institutionalized in our system. Therefore, it is essential for the government to reevaluate its current system to operate efficiently while utilizing our precious resources in a more effective way.

GovLoop’s free virtual summit will provide several trainings focusing on real topics in debate among government workers right now such as big data, cybersecurity, citizen engagement, and cloud. The keynote will start the day with a discussion on what core problems are aiding to the disconnect between our expanding government and citizen satisfaction. It is the government’s responsibility to identify these problems and fix them. Schuck will show how the problems originate in both our constitutional system and our political culture. Institutions such as Congress are then constrained from making the reforms necessary to combat these issues.

Tools that are needed to make significant changes within your agency will be provided and discussed throughout each training. Consistent with Schuck’s ideas, other government experts along with Govloop employees will help you locate problems rooted in common processes such as incentive building, information management, and bureaucracy itself. Don’t forget to claim your spot in this summit that is sure to promote positive growth within the government.

In the meantime, watch our keynote speaker on the Daily Show, holding his own with the comedic political genius, Jon Stewart. Also, check out his most recent book, Why Government Fails so Often and How We Can Do Better, and his other groundbreaking work here.