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OFM chief Kathleen Drew says employee suggestions have saved the state more than $11 million

Productivity Board (state employee suggestion program) · April 9, 2026
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Summary

At a Productivity Board coffee klatch on April 9, Office of Financial Management Chief of Staff Kathleen Drew said employee suggestions have produced more than $11 million in savings, outlined common inefficiencies (paper processes, duplicate phones, end-of-biennium spending) and described OFM efforts to consolidate space and improve services.

Kathleen Drew, chief of staff for the state Office of Financial Management, told state employees at the Productivity Board’s virtual monthly coffee klatch on April 9 that ideas from workers have yielded more than $11,000,000 in savings to the state and more than $134,000 in cash awards to employees as a result of the suggestion program.

Drew said she reviewed “over 400 responses” to the governor’s call for cost-saving ideas and described common themes: more than 50 emails strongly supported continued teleworking; roughly 60 mentioned compensation or related concerns; about 150 were focused on individual agencies such as DSHS, DCYF and the Department of Corrections. “A lot of the responses included more than one suggestion,” she said.

Why it matters: Drew framed the employee-suggestion program as a source of practical, frontline ideas that can increase…

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