Most people don’t associate “government” with speed, innovation, or empowered employees.
But under the leadership of Steve Preston, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) delivered one of the fastest, most profound operational transformations in recent federal history—driven not by consultants or technology, but by the belief that frontline employees had the answers.
As Preston writes in the Foreword to Ideas to Action:
“Success begins when leaders believe in their people—and act on that belief in practical ways.”
That’s exactly what he did when called from the private sector to serve the nation in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the unprecedented damage to homes and businesses along the Gulf Coast.
A Crisis with No Playbook
When Preston arrived at the SBA—the federal agency responsible for originating, approving, and disbursing disaster relief loans—he found the organization buried in a historic backlog: over 90,000 loan applications were waiting for approval.
Public confidence had plummeted. Congressional pressure was mounting. Employees were overwhelmed and demoralized.
It was the kind of crisis that typically triggers one of two leadership defaults: cut staff or hire outsiders.
Steve Preston chose neither.
Instead, he asked a different question: What if the people closest to the work already had the answers?
Belief Before Process
Rather than imposing sweeping reforms from above, Preston doubled down on something less obvious—but far more powerful:
belief in his people.
He empowered cross-functional teams of frontline employees to rethink the disaster loan process from the ground up. He brought in coaching and tools—but not a one-size-fits-all program.
The only non-negotiables? Act fast. Act together. Act on employee insight.
It wasn’t just a tactical shift. It was a leadership mindset shift.
And it paid off.
From Backlog to Breakthrough
Within 45 days, the SBA had slashed the loan backlog by over 75%.
But the real transformation was just beginning.
With the momentum of that first success, SBA employees went on to redesign the entire disaster loan operation—introducing the Case Manager model and dramatically improving performance, morale, and responsiveness.
Then they turned their attention to the agency’s flagship small business lending program, applying the same principles and process.
Within 18 months, a once-struggling agency had risen from last to first in federal employee engagement rankings.
The Takeaway? Belief Is the Catalyst
The SBA’s story proves that belief isn’t a soft ideal—it’s a strategic accelerator.
But belief alone isn’t enough. What made Preston’s leadership different was that he paired belief with action. He gave his teams a clear process, permission to lead, and urgency without panic.
In the Ideas to Action framework, we call this a leap of faith—not blind faith, but conviction rooted in respect for employee insight and a process that delivers.
This is what real transformation looks like.
Yes. Even in government.
Want to lead like this?
- Watch this week’s video on the five leadership beliefs—the mindset shift that makes employee-powered innovation possible:
Watch on YouTube - Get the full playbook: Ideas to Action on Amazon
- Read last week’s case study: How One Team Used Ideas-to-Action to Get AI-Ready
- Coming next: We’ll explore the five-step Ideas-to-Action Process™ that makes this kind of breakthrough repeatable.
