Building a Future-Ready Workforce

Angie Quirarte has spent her career at the frontline of public service reform. From California’s DMV strike team to the White House Office of Management and Budget, her work has focused on enabling public servants to deliver services that actually work for people. In a recent conversation, she returned again and again to one central theme: digital transformation is not about technology alone - it is about people, policy, and purpose.

Public service as a human problem

Too often, governments frame transformation as a technical project. Angie argued the opposite: the real challenge is human. “Technology is the easy part,” she explained. The hard part is culture, trust, and enabling people inside the system to work differently.

That insight shaped her early work on the DMV strike team in California, where long lines and public frustration had eroded confidence. The problems were not simply technical. They were about communication, incentives, and staff being asked to solve complex challenges with outdated processes. By redesigning procedures, clarifying roles, and creating new channels for feedback, the team made measurable improvements in service - and restored confidence in the workforce.

Collaboration and humility

Angie stressed the importance of humility in leadership. Transformation does not happen because of one person, but because multidisciplinary teams are empowered to collaborate around a shared purpose. Her experience has shown that the most effective teams include not only technologists but also designers, frontline staff, policy experts, and community voices.

The role of leadership, she said, is to create the conditions for collaboration: setting clear missions, removing barriers, and protecting teams while they learn. It is not about heroic decision-making from the top, but about enabling people across the system to contribute their expertise.

Fixing hiring and workforce strategy

One of the recurring obstacles to reform is hiring. Government often struggles to attract the talent it needs, especially for technical and design roles. Angie argued that fixing hiring is central to digital reform. Skills-based hiring, streamlined processes, and greater flexibility are all essential.

During her time in California and later at OMB, she worked on initiatives to make it easier for people with the right skills to join government quickly. But she also emphasised that talent is not only about new recruits. Existing staff need pathways to grow their skills and apply them in new contexts. A future-ready workforce is one that combines external expertise with internal development.

Preparing for AI

AI is now unavoidable in conversations about the future of government. Angie’s perspective is pragmatic. Rather than chasing headlines, governments should focus on building “AI enabling” roles - people who can understand, question, and guide how AI is used in practice. That means not only data scientists and engineers, but also ethicists, social scientists, and public servants with deep knowledge of context.

She warned against treating AI as a purely technical challenge. The most valuable skills will include judgment, empathy, and the ability to translate between technical and non-technical communities. “We need to teach people to ask better questions,” she said. In the age of AI, curiosity and critical thinking are as important as coding.

Service delivery under pressure

Angie’s time in California included some of the most high-pressure moments of public service reform. The DMV crisis was one. The COVID-19 pandemic was another. Both required rapid adaptation, clear communication, and courage to make difficult changes.

She recalled how during COVID, public servants were asked to reorganise overnight - shifting entire services online, redesigning workflows, and building new communication channels at pace. What worked, she said, was not a single technical fix but the ability of teams to collaborate under pressure, supported by leaders who gave them space to act.

These experiences reinforced her belief that digital transformation is about resilience. Governments that invest in their people and systems before a crisis are far better placed to adapt when the unexpected happens.

Three pillars of delivery

When asked what makes the difference in service reform, Angie pointed to three pillars: communication, feedback loops, and incentives.

Communication ensures that everyone understands the mission, the problem being solved, and the role they play. Without clear communication, efforts scatter and staff feel disconnected.

Feedback loops allow services to adapt in real time. By listening to citizens and frontline staff, governments can identify what is working and what is not, and adjust quickly.

Incentives shape behaviour. If staff are rewarded only for avoiding mistakes, they will avoid change. If they are encouraged to try new approaches and learn from outcomes, they will innovate. Aligning incentives with public value is essential for lasting reform.

The future of public service

Looking ahead, Angie spoke about the kind of culture governments must create. It is not enough to publish strategies. What matters is modelling values, fostering bravery, and making collaboration the norm. In an era of low trust, public servants must be supported to act with integrity, humility, and courage.

Education will be critical. Angie argued that governments must help people build the skills they need not only to work with new technologies but also to question them. Teaching curiosity, empathy, and ethical reasoning is as important as teaching technical skills. The future public service will be defined as much by its character as by its capability.

A shared conclusion

Angie returned to the same lesson: Government 3.0 will be built by investing in people and systems together. Technology can help, but only if the workforce is empowered, incentives are aligned, and services are designed around citizens.

The path forward is not glamorous. It is fixing hiring, modernising procurement, investing in training, and creating safe spaces for teams to learn. It is building strategies that last beyond election cycles and ensuring that citizens see services that work in their daily lives.

As Angie put it, the work is human. It is about trust, resilience, and creating the conditions for people to succeed. Governments that understand this will not only adapt to the digital age - they will earn the confidence of their citizens.

Angie Quirarte’s reflections are a reminder that the future of government is not an abstract debate about technology. It is about building a workforce that is capable, confident, and connected to public purpose. It is about investing in infrastructure and people together, ensuring that reforms last.

The Future Government Institute is proud to have Fellows like Angie sharing these lessons. Her journey from California to Washington embodies the spirit of Government 3.0: humble, human-centred, and focused on outcomes that matter.

The task for governments everywhere is clear. Fix the basics, invest in people, and create the space for curiosity and courage. The future will not wait - but with the right foundations, governments can be ready for it.