Modernisation of the government is as unpopular as it is unavoidable in the German public sector. However, in view of upcoming staff shortages, innovation and red tape reduction can become an opportunity for bureaucracy instead of a threat. In the interwoven multi-level state, modernisation is likely to encounter even more obstacles, as Michael Thöne explains in his presentation at the renowned Loccum Finance Days. But federalism, he points out, also offers more opportunities and fields of experimentation for innovative modernisation.