Matt McDonald

The Macro Risk-Reward Tradeoff: How To Balance Stability And Growth

Hamilton Place Strategies

Sep 2017

The economic trauma of the Great Recession sparked a good deal of “never again” policy-making in Washington. The result has been slow, but steady, growth. This dynamic raises the obvious question: If we want to maximize economic growth, how long does slow-and-steady growth need to last to make it a better policy choice than boom-and-bust? This analysis shows that if policymakers are trying to maximize long-term growth, they should aim to return to the average growth rate of previous expansions – even if it comes with another Great Recession. Key findings include: At current growth rates, even a global record-length expansion would fall short of more booms-and-busts if the boom is equal to the average of the past five expansions. If we belie

A New Strategic Framework For Public Policy Engagement

Hamilton Place Strategies

Nov 2016

There are plenty of lessons to be learned from this election cycle, but one thing is clear: good public policymaking isn’t getting any simpler. Not only are the issues complicated, but the arguments, campaigns, and persuasion around those issues are more complex than ever. Organizations need to adapt their strategy for this new environment. In a context where uncertainty is high, issues can escalate quickly and shifting public policy for the better can be complex and expensive. Dealing with this demands that firms, non-profits, and others create a more robust strategic framework for engaging on these issues. In this paper, HPS looked at some of the trends in public affairs to understand the dynamics shaping the space and develop a framework

Information Triage: Developing A Systemic Approach To Crisis

Hamilton Place Strategies

Oct 2016

We have seen numerous recent examples of companies in trouble that came under intense public scrutiny and then struggled to explain themselves, with serious reputational and market consequences. These cases have raised the stakes for crisis management capabilities in the modern public affairs function. Managing a crisis situation creates natural organizational tensions—balancing speed with accuracy, balancing legal and reputational considerations, and balancing responding to the issue with elevating the issue profile. All of this must be weighed in the context of a decision-making process that allows action when needed. This white paper draws on HPS’ experience in corporate crisis and rapid response on presidential campaigns to create a sys

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Thought Leadership Defined

Oct 2015

Thought leadership is one of the most used and abused terms in Washington. Despite this, it is also arguably more important now than ever to impact the rules of tomorrow by shaping the ideas of today. To add some structure to an idea and process that is nebulous at best, HPS looked at how individuals and firms can understand and approach thought leadership from a more concrete and actionable perspective. The key takeaways of this paper are: Thought leadership is an important component of public policy strategy. Thought leaders can add value to a policy debate though issue expertise, innovation, explanation, and decision making. Establishing thought leadership requires time, discipline, and a range of tools to make it effective and sustaina

The Fastest Start-ups In The World

Hamilton Place Strategies

Jun 2015

From a business perspective, modern presidential campaigns are the fastest startups in the world. HPS' latest research looks at how campaigns scale and the implications for the candidates and staffers starting the race to 2016. The findings of the paper are: Modern presidential campaigns raise and spend money faster than any startup in the business world, even the fastest and most successful in Silicon Valley. The ability of a presidential campaign to scale effectively at the right time can be one of the differences in winning or losing the White House. There are a handful of shared best practices across the worlds of campaigns, startups, and management that can help a campaign to meet this challenge.

Match.gov - The Missing Piece of Entitlement Reform

Hamilton Place Strategies

Jun 2013

No one in Washington would argue that fixing the programs is politically easy, yet aside from the political risk of attempting to reform entitlements, there is another problem: the primary policy proposals to date (tax hikes or spending cuts) only fix part of the problem because they don’t address how these programs are truly funded. If we want to stop revisiting our entitlement problems, we need to more closely align the benefits we receive from the programs with how they are actually funded. If we don’t, we are likely to bounce from one fix to another as societal trends change. One fix might work for 10 years, another might work for 50, but a permanent solution has to more effectively match funding mechanisms with benefit formulas, much l

Balancing on the Cliff

Hamilton Place Strategies

Dec 2012

"Balancing on the Cliff" examined the central role of entitlement reform to a "balanced" deal to avert the fiscal cliff and how it could even make room for a deal.

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The Path Forward

Sep 2012

"The Path Forward" was intended to jumpstart a discussion of the economic policy path forward in conjunction with the return of Congress from summer recess, the President’s joint address to Congress on the economy and the first meeting of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. The report was broken down into three parts: Report 1: "Current Economic Challenges" identifies the major causes of our economic slump. Report 2: "Policy Options" looks at major policy choices that exist to address our current economic problems. Report 3: "Political Solutions for the Economy" outlines a potential political path toward real action on the economy.

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The Hamilton Financial Index - Summer 2012

Partnership For A Secure Financial Future

Jul 2012

The purpose of the Hamilton Financial Index, a semi-annual report tied to the Federal Reserve's Humphrey-Hawkins testimony, evaluated the safety and soundness of the financial sector as well as provide policy analysis surrounding the fiscal cliff.

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The Hamilton Financial Index - February 2012

Partnership For A Secure Financial Future

Feb 2012

The Winter Hamilton Financial Index, a semi-annual report tied to the Federal Reserve's Humphrey-Hawkins testimony, evaluated the safety and soundness of the financial sector as well as provide policy analysis surrounding the Durbin Amendment.

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The Hamilton Financial Index

The Hamilton Financial Index: A semi-annual report on the state of our financial services industry February 2012 With a review of the economic impact of the Durbin Amendment

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