Recoding America

Why Government Is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better

By: Jennifer Pahlka

Narrated by: Jennifer Pahlka

A bold call to reexamine how our government operates—and sometimes fails to—from President Obama’s former deputy chief technology officer and the founder of Code for America.

Just when we most need our government to work—to decarbonize our infrastructure and economy, to help the vulnerable through a pandemic, to defend ourselves against global threats—it is faltering. Government at all levels has limped into the digital age, offering online services that can feel even more cumbersome than the paperwork that preceded them and widening the gap between the policy outcomes we intend and what we get.

But it’s not more money or more tech we need. Government is hamstrung by a rigid, industrial-era culture, in which elites dictate policy from on high, disconnected from and too often disdainful of the details of implementation. Lofty goals morph unrecognizably as they cascade through a complex hierarchy. But there is an approach taking hold that keeps pace with today’s world and reclaims government for the people it is supposed to serve. Jennifer Pahlka shows why we must stop trying to move the government we have today onto new technology and instead consider what it would mean to truly recode American government.

Published by Metropolitan Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company

©2023 Jennifer Pahlka (P)2023 Audible, Inc.

BEST BOOK EVER

Thank you thank you thank you for writing this. I’ve never felt more listened to as a public servant who accidentally ended up in the wild world of tech.

Why get stuck in a waterfall? Be agile and skip the drenching.

It was an inspiring and thought provoking read for an IT person. Simplification of bureaucratic processes positively impact everyone dealing with any government. Great story to learn how.

A *very* important book

As a long time defense contractor who has actually faced down the ESB requirement, this book was equal parts humbling and vindication. It does an excellent job of showcasing how the sausage is actually made from multiple perspectives, and how bad things happen with government delivery.

The author’s optimism carries the day though. When you feel as if true success is only possible on small scales (where the lack of attention and oversight allows teams to take chances, it’s refreshing to have someone convincing us that we’re not simply trapped under the crushing weight of the machine.

We need more people like her!

Eye opening

This is eye opening as someone who has only worked in the private sector. I recommend it to anyone in government or IT.

change thenwaybyou see public policy

learned so much. really enjoyed it. the idea where laid out clearly with great examples.