Since the start of Donald Trump’s second term as president, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has initiated a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. federal government, leading to significant disruptions across various agencies.
Mass Layoffs and Restructuring: An Unprecedented Scale
DOGE has executed mass layoffs, with thousands of federal employees dismissed or pushed into accepting buyouts. This aggressive downsizing has particularly impacted the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which is on the brink of being dismantled, resulting in the furlough of global staff and the planned elimination of approximately 2,000 domestic positions. Overall, the federal workforce has been slashed by a number estimated around 100,000 in one month.
Other Challenges & Controversies
The DOGE methods have raised numerous controversies. Data access, including those of the Treasury Department and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) by inexperienced DOGE staffers, as well as leadership appointments, and aggressive agency interventions through executive orders have raised questions and legal objections around DOGE initiatives.
A Bloated Government
While the concern generated around the DOGE methods cannot be understated, it would be hard to find a reasoned perspective to argue that the US federal government was not indeed heavily bloated. Musk’s now trademark “sledgehammer” approach to cost-cutting, agree with it or not, is heavily effective. As we have seen at Twitter (now X), a blunt initial approach is likely to be rebalanced with a more surgical approach, possibly even rehiring and re-expansion.
How to Approach DOGE
In an uprooted Federal Government, those who proactively engage with DOGE representatives see the best results. A CostPerform partner, consulting with the Federal Government for 20 years, observes that “staff taking the lead in their interactions with the DOGE, setting expectations, and thinking along with their mission to reduce costs have been highly productive in avoiding undesirable outcomes so far”. He adds, “those who survive this initial cost-cutting period may even benefit from a more efficient Federal Government to come.”
Lesson #1 A Proactive Approach is Key
Concrete Deliverables, Outcome-based Justifications
DOGE staff have already shown a practical preference for dollar spend that can be tied with a tangible good. Spending on IT hardware or infrastructure, for example, has been prioritized over abstract consulting fees or administrative overhead. This preference for concrete deliverables extends to all areas of government spending, with agencies now under pressure to demonstrate measurable returns on investment (ROI).
Lesson #2 Data-driven Justifications Win
DOGE operates with a Silicon Valley-style efficiency mindset, meaning that numbers matter more than narratives. Agencies that leverage data, performance metrics, and outcome-based justifications are more likely to retain funding. Those who fail to provide clear cost-benefit analyses risk severe budget cuts or outright dissolution.
CostPerform, for instance, has seen a notable uptick in interest since due to the new efficiency drive. CostPerform’s product, a tangible software product which helps agencies to justify their spending through ROI-led cost models, is already a key part of the toolkit for some federal agency employees keen to demonstrate what they or their agencies do.
A Shift in Public Sector Culture
One of the most radical shifts DOGE is triggering is a push to a performance-driven government. Legal challenges and controversies aside, federal employees are being evaluated with private-sector-inspired key performance indicators (KPIs), leading to an uncomfortable cultural adjustment for many long-standing bureaucrats.
The DOGE emphasis on cost reduction, streamlined processes, and technological integration is forcing agencies to rethink their traditional ways of operating almost overnight.
Lesson #3: Adaptability Matters
The Future of DOGE and the Federal Government
For the best example of the DOGE playbook, it’s best to look at Twitter (now X). An initial ‘bulldozer’ phase was followed by a more surgical approach to cost-cutting, and even a push of the needle back towards re-hiring. There is opportunity for federal employees who demonstrate adaptability, pro-activeness and adopt a data-driven approach. ROI-measuring software companies like CostPerform notice an uptick in interest as dollar spend changes direction, from knowledge consultants towards “Silicon-Valley” IT hardware and infrastructure brought forward by DOGE.
The Three Lessons for Dealing with DOGE – Summary for Federal Employees
Lesson #1 A Proactive Approach is Key
Lesson #2 Data-driven Justifications Win
Lesson #3: Adaptability Matters
