12 Occupational Outlook Quarterly • Summer 2012

For Mike Horrigan, teaching has 

always been at the heart of what he 

likes doing best. And this passion has 

helped to shape his career.

Mike’s first job after earning his Ph.D. 

was teaching economics at Williams College. 

While on sabbatical from that job, he spent a 

year at the U.S. Department of Labor and led 

several research seminars at BLS. Mike then 

applied for—and accepted—a position as a 

BLS research economist, marking the start of 

a 26-year career.

About every 3 years, Mike has changed 

jobs at BLS. Each job that he’s held has taught 

him something new—and these lessons 

have helped him move up to the top levels of 

management. As a manager, Mike applies his 

love of teaching in diverse ways. He directs 

employees in BLS programs, for example, and 

gives presentations to the public about BLS 

data.

Mike recently received a Presidential 

Rank Award, one of the most prestigious honors given to managers in the federal government.

What do you do?

I manage four survey programs: the Consumer 

Price Index, the Producer Price Index, the 

International Price Index, and the Consumer 

Expenditures Survey.

I don’t directly run any of those programs. 

My role is to think corporately in terms of 

planning, budgeting, and the efficient use of 

resources. And I’m often involved in providing direction for any major projects, like 

the redesign of the Consumer Expenditures 

Survey.

Another significant aspect of the job is to 

be the face of BLS for the price programs. I 

am invited to give talks and represent our programs in various public forums. I also help to 

plan the direction for the entire BLS on issues 

like human resources or IT infrastructure.

Which early experiences helped to shape 

your career?

When I was in 8th grade, I got a job that was 

almost ideal. I was a camp counselor helper 

in the morning, and in the afternoon I got to 

My career

Michael W. Horrigan

Associate Commissioner for the Office of 

Prices and Living Conditions, Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS), Washington, D.C.

BLS fast facts: Managers, all other

•	 May 2011 wage and salary employment: 

343,560

•	 2010-20 projection: 8 percent growth 

(slower than average)

•	 May 2011 median annual wage: $99,540

•	 Typical education and training: High 

school diploma or equivalent and 1 to 

5 years of work experience in a related 

occupation

•	 May 2011 top employing industries: 

Federal executive branch; management of 

companies and enterprises; local government; state government; colleges, universities, and professional schools

Manager
Summer 2012 • Occupational Outlook Quarterly 13

teach my own swimming classes. I absolutely 

fell in love with teaching. I worked at the 

camp every summer throughout high school. 

So by the time I got out of high school, I knew 

I wanted to teach in one way or another.

Describe your educational background.

I was a math major, but I took as many economics classes as possible. The thing I liked 

about economics was that it blended theory 

with real-world applications. And it turns out 

that math included a really useful set of skills 

to have for economics.

In graduate school, I was a teaching assistant, and they paid you to teach—which to me 

was the most wonderful thing in the world. 

That’s how I paid for school. My doctoral 

thesis was on the duration of unemployment, 

and I used BLS data. So because of that, I 

went down the route of becoming a labor 

economist.

To what do you attribute your success 

at BLS?

I’ve been really lucky, but I’ve also taken 

advantage of opportunities as they’ve come 

up.

For example, when I was asked to help 

with a Department of Labor task force in 

1988, I jumped at it. Similarly, in 1990, I was 

asked to work as a labor economist at the 

Council of Economic Advisers. When I came 

back to BLS in 1991, I was given my first 

opportunity to manage a program: the BLS 

survey of employer-provided training. It was a 

great experience. There were four of us working with other staff we recruited from around 

BLS. We did everything from designing the 

survey to selecting the sample, running estimates, and disseminating the results.

At my next job, running the National 

Longitudinal Survey, it was my first foray 

into how to handle significant budget issues. 

That was when I went from being a technical 

supervisor to thinking like a broad-based 

manager.

Any surprises along the way?

When I first started, I didn’t know I would 

enjoy managing as much as I do now—

managing people and providing direction and 

vision for the programs.

And it’s funny, because I still teach. Right 

now I’m teaching a course at the Georgetown 

University Public Policy Institute. Teaching 

will always be a part of what I do.

What’s your best advice?

Take advantage of opportunities when they 

are presented. To have a career path like mine, 

where you have various jobs, it’s not something you can plan for.

For managers, I would advise: Don’t 

micromanage. Trust your people. If people 

feel like you trust their work, they respond to 

that. And they do a better job at it as a result.

And if you have this, you are truly lucky: 

I have a lot of fun in my work. I love working 

with the people I work with, and I laugh a lot. 

This is a fun job. It’s also a serious job and 

there are serious issues, but you have to know 

how to balance it.

Michael Horrigan was interviewed by Elka Torpey, an economist in the Office of

Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections, BLS. She can be reached at 

torpey.elka@bls.gov.