Sarah Sullivan
‘We Had to Build a Culture of Truth-tellers’: Sarah Sullivan on Creating an Environment of Honesty at USDS
| Sarah Sullivan spent two and a half years with the US Digital Service, beginning in October 2014. Her final title at the organization was Chief of Staff. Prior, Sarah was a senior writer for President Obama and ran for the Massachusetts House as a college student. |
Sarah Sullivan was already working in the White House as a writer for President Obama when the US Digital Service formed. Her passion for civic engagement — especially among young Americans — motivated her to move over to the nascent USDS.
An important part of Sarah’s role was helping to build the internal culture that allowed USDS teammates to tell the truth in the scariest rooms in the world. She did this by creating a culture of ritual and storytelling – like birthing the first USDS coin ceremony at the White House historical society and designing an orientation process for new USDS staff members, a program that entailed new hires sharing their reasons for joining the organization — reasons that were often personal and emotional.
Below, Sarah speaks about the exponential growth of USDS, the transformative power of public service, and the importance of USDS’s Communities of Practice.
Full interview coming soon.