It's been three decades since Nassau had a county executive who regularly used words like "innovation" and "vision." Today, stagnant county agencies are dissolving in the face of a little adversity. But government agencies in the worst shape can turn themselves around when leaders show the interest and the guts to create an atmosphere of reform.

A decade ago, Washington State's Workers Compensation Program had operating losses larger than those in Nassau County. Spiraling costs and deadlocked labor and business interests had many thinking of scrapping the whole program. Instead, the agency reinvented itself, openly striving to be "the best public service agency in America." They rethought everything from the ground up and became a full service, customer-oriented insurance company. Now the fund has surpluses in the hundreds of millions and outperforms every other insurance company in the state in benefits and customer satisfaction.

Real leadership includes the willingness to take a chance, and government success stories tend to have common elements.

Innovative governments apply new technology intelligently and with purpose. They don't just put computers on workers' desks and declare that they've "re-engineered" the department. In Houston, developers can now submit applications to the vast Planning Department online, where it's automatically available to every affected agency. Mountains of paperwork have been eliminated, and they were able to eliminate five major steps from the decision-making process. Planning decisions are now typically made within nine days.

Governments often work best by bringing together coalitions to solve problems, rather than adding new agencies. To its credit, New York City's "Neighborhood Enterpreneurs Program" has helped rehabilitate and put on the tax rolls city-owned abandoned properties that once were hopeless. Six years ago, city officials started forming local networks of community leaders, businessmen and banks to identify potential buyers who fix up the buildings. Some tough blocks have been rehabilitated. For five years, the city's Partnership for Parks program has engaged thousands of groups in projects to improve, maintain and support local parks. They've brought together public and private resources to form a lasting pro-parks constituency.

Innovative governments also trust workers and help unleash their creativity. Los Angeles County, CA has provided some 2,600 county workers with a telecommuting option, allowing employees to work out of their homes or an office near their home. County managers trust employees to get the work done, and employees have responded with greatly increased productivity, eagerness to take on new responsibilities and reduced absenteeism.

In an atmosphere of innovation, performance is measured and rewarded. The State of Illinois turned its foster care program around by rewarding private service providers for successful, permanent placement of children. They used to pay them by caseload count, which inadvertedly penalized high-performing agencies. In 1997, Illinois had the highest percentage of children in foster care in the country, and the system was swamped. Today, the state's caseload is already down by more than a third.

Can it happen here? Absolutely. Will it? If leaders lead and think.