Inducible genes use chromatin strategies to regulate their responsiveness to stimuli. Inducible genes maintain accessible chromatin at transcription factor binding sites that enable transcription factors to bind and initiate a sequence of events, including remodeling of inducible chromatin to promote accessibility along the gene body, which is required for transcription. Inducible genes with poised RNA polymerase II can be induced very rapidly, since transcription factor binding triggers pause-release of the polymerase directly into elongation, rather than triggering initial assembly of the transcriptional machinery. Inducible genes with poised RNA polymerase II can be induced synchronously, as well.