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Given our national obsession with efficiency, time management, and resource allocation, it is astounding that political scientists have not recently examined the organizational structure of congressional offices.1 Between the House of Representatives and Senate, there are 535 individual fiefdoms that employ those who toil away on Capitol Hill. What becomes abundantly clear from working on the Hill is that each of these offices marches to the beat of a different drummer. Every morning, after the ritualistic quest for coffee and the obligatory trot through security scanners, over 17,000 staffers find their way and open the doors to their respective offices.2 It is assumed that what works for one office is not a panacea for all.
For the most part, the individuality of congressional offices makes sense. Each member or senator has unique views about representation, legislative priorities, future political aspirations, and the role of staff. Nonetheless, there is room in Congress for a wider sharing of "best practices" that could improve the organizational management found in its personal offices. By good fortune, I happened to stumble across such an example in Senator Joe Lieberman's (D-CT) office.
Many Senate offices (although not all, by a long shot) take advantage of the various fellowship programs available on the Hill. Some offices even make room for numerous fellows on an annual basis. What makes Senator lieberman's office noteworthy is that the entire legislative team is organized with fellows in mind. In most offices, it is commonplace for a fellow to either assume the duties of a vacancy or work with a permanent staffer on a particular policy issue. Other offices may hire a fellow to fulfill a specific timely need, such as bringing on a health policy expert for avian flu research.
Instead of viewing fellows as gratis legislative assistants who fill policy gaps, Senator lieberman's office organization revolves around six "policy teams" that consist of one or two fellows and one permanent legislative assistant. Every year, each policy team works to develop a legislative proposal for the senator in January. The oral and written presentation of the year's legislative goals facilitates a long-term planning mechanism for policy achievement. Although the permanent member of the senator's staff is the "team leader," the entire group meets regularly with the...