Overview

• On May 28, Acting Undersecretary Jules Hurst III told civilian staff to conclude the “What You Did Last Week” emails with a final submission that includes one idea to improve efficiency or root out waste.
• The five-bullet exercise was launched in February by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to boost transparency but faced uneven adoption and stirred morale and privacy concerns.
• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth enforced the weekly reports with a February memorandum after the Office of Personnel Management initially deemed them voluntary.
• Several agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, CDC and IRS, have quietly phased out the weekly bullet-point updates in favor of more targeted performance measures.
• Pentagon officials say the idea-driven requirement will give leaders new insights for cost-saving and signal a move away from coercive oversight methods.