Jennifer Pahlka
Jennifer Pahlka is the author of Recoding America, and a pioneer in making government work for people in the digital age. Ezra Klein called her book “one of the best policy books I have ever read.” And “the book I wish all policymakers would read.” Jennifer is a senior fellow at the Niskanen Center and the Federation of American Scientists and a senior advisor to the Abundance Network.
In 2010, Jennifer Pahlka founded Code for America and led the organization for ten years. In 2013, she took a leave of absence to serve as U.S. Deputy Chief Technology Officer under President Obama and helped found the United States Digital Service. She served on the Defense Innovation Board, started by the late Ash Carter, under Presidents Obama and Trump.
At the start of the pandemic, she also co-founded United States Digital Response, which helps government meet the needs of the public with volunteer tech support. Presently, she serves as the organization’s board chair.
She received the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2018. Also, Wired named her one of the 25 people who has most shaped the past 25 years. She serves on the boards of US Digital Response, America’s Frontier Fund, and the Volcker Alliance.
Jennifer is a graduate of Yale University and lives in Virginia with her husband, Tim O’Reilly.
Trade Paperback
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Named one of NPR's Best Books of 2023
Named one of Ezra Klein's "Books That Explain Where We Are in 2023," The New York Times
Learn more about Jennifer Pahlka's work at recodingamerica.us.
“The book I wish every policymaker would read.”
—Ezra Klein, The New York Times
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Hardback
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Named one of NPR's Best Books of 2023
Named one of Ezra Klein's "Books That Explain Where We Are in 2023," The New York Times
Learn more about Jennifer Pahlka's work at recodingamerica.us.
“The book I wish every policymaker would read.”
—Ezra Klein, The New York Times
<...Read More
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Policy Divides; Delivery Unites
Politics is often described as “how the policy gets done.” But how the policy gets implemented – its delivery – is a whole different kettle of fish. Elites think in terms of policy, but the rest of the country knows about delivery. We know about it because it’s the fabric of our daily lives. When what government delivers disappoints or, worse, frightens or insults us, it shapes who we are as citizens, whether left or right. Improving our ability to deliver not only serves both parties, but it also strengthens our democracy.
Everyone Has a Plan Until They Get Punched in the Face
When healthcare.gov first launched, with millions enrolling, it served a total of eight users on its first day. But by the end of the first enrollment period, the site had helped even more people than had been planned before its disastrous launch. And when the agency responsible for the site took on its next big project, it was on time, dramatically under budget, and so easy to use that their clients, used to constant frustration, wondered if they landed on the wrong website. That punch to the face turned into a dramatic transformation. How can you turn adversity into resilience?
Are we starving government by design? Or starving it of design?
Longstanding fights over big government vs small government are getting our country nowhere. We can have a government that’s less burdensome on businesses and the public and gets better social outcomes, and the key isn’t necessarily more money. It’s recognizing that what operates our government today is a mess of policy, process, and technology that has accrued over time without ever being designed to do what we need it to. Redesigning the machinery of public services is a choice we can and should make. What does that look like, and how do we make it happen?
“What causes such maddening bottlenecks in government? ‘Kludgeocracy.’”
“The IRA Is Our Best Shot at Tackling Climate Change—But Only If We Don’t Squander It”
“Better government tech starts with people. New Jersey shows how.”
Learn more about Jennifer on Forbes.
Recoding America named one of NPR’s Best Books of 2023
“The Books That Explain Where We Are in 2023 by Ezra Klein”
“The Problem with Dull Knives: What’s the Defense Department got to do with Code for America?”
“I worked for Obama, but I’m going to Trump’s tech meeting. Here’s why.”
“Death Star Thinking and Government Reform”
“Neglecting the machinery of government is a choice”
“What on earth is SME-QA and why should you care about it?”
“The CIO Problem, Part 2: Innovation”
“Jen’s an engaging and inspirational storyteller. Her journey and presentation impactful, reminding us to keep the client first and then clear the layers of policy roadblocks to get the best solution. My team shared key their key takeaways about innovation, risk, and coordination. Some standouts included:
‘Build a strong learning culture to increase acceptance of new ideas and different approaches.’
‘Be great, disruptive, and provocative.’
‘Federal leadership should broaden their risk tolerance appetite.’
‘We are not stuck in traffic; we are the traffic.’
‘Grit. Tenacity. Bravery.’
Jen reminded us that embracing change is not just about technology; it’s about keeping people at the center of change.”
— Vinay V. Singh, Chief Financial Officer and Chief AI Officer, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentPraise for Recoding America
“The book I wish every policymaker would read.”
— Ezra Klein, The New York Times“An indispensable new book…Recoding America isn’t just about tech. It’s about the American administrative state, and it’s a call for paring back the rigid rules that make it so hard to govern, and for rebuilding government’s ability to do its job effectively.”
— The Atlantic“Democracy depends on trust, and trust depends on the actual delivery of government services, delivery that fails far too often. Recoding America should be on the reading list of every person who wants to make a difference in the world, and every public servant who wants to make government work.”
— Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO of New America“Jen Pahlka’s insight and experience make her the perfect author of this manifesto on how and why we must reset the relationships between people, policy, bureaucracy, and technology. Her call to action to understand people first, and to find ways to improve policy and systems, without always piling on more, should be in the front of the minds of every policymaker and project manager, working in the public sector.”
— Garlin Gilchrist, Lt. Governor of Michigan“Recoding America will rattle some cages, but Pahlka’s engaging and vivid accounts of policy rhetoric crashing onto the rocks of implementation will convince you those cages need a little rattling. A compelling argument to focus on the underappreciated art of delivery in our digital era.”
— Satya Nadella, CEO of MicrosoftBook This Speaker
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