Yearly Archives: 2010

Federal Hiring reform– what does it mean for you?

The federal government is set to hire 600,000 people in the next 2 years, and to do that, they will need to make the hiring process a whole lot easier for outside (non-federal) applicants. Many job-seekers from outside the federal system have complained for years about the difficulty and complexity–not to mention the inscrutability–of theRead… Read more »

CB2: Getting Emergency Notification Right

Mobile emergency notifications can save lives by getting important messages out to (or soliciting them from) the public quickly. Whether it’s a phone call delivering a tornado warning minutes before touchdown or a text message alerting students of a shooter on campus, there’s no doubt that it’s an invaluable service when done right. But whatRead… Read more »

Governance Blues? Build the Blocks

Government websites have been prevalent since 1995. Fifteen years. Yet agencies still have internal struggles over who should “own” the website and web team, and there is no commonly-accepted model for a web governance structure across government. Even agencies with seemingly strong “web governance” have seen it all fall apart when administrations changed. Governance seemsRead… Read more »

Join the planning team for SF Bay Area open government event (next call 5pm Pacific today)

Hi, We’re having our 3rd planning call today to discuss a potential open government unconference in the SF Bay Area. We’re still very early in the process, anyone interested in making this happen is welcome to join. Event details (please RSVP): July 28, 2010 from 5pm to 6pm Dial-in Number: 1-213-289-0500 (Los Angeles, long distanceRead… Read more »

DAV Traveling the Country to help our Veterans

Last week I highlighted for you some of the work that HP recently did with the PVA National Wheelchair Games in Denver. The important part of the event was not our sponsorship or providing the technology to help out the games, it was about the stories of the tremendous veterans we met who have livedRead… Read more »

Measuring the success of the UK’s overseas network

Every year, the digital team at the UK’s Foreign Office reviews how well the post sites are doing, or not, as part of an annual health-check of our capabilities, which ties up with the not-taken-up-often-enough opportunity to talk to the editors of the FCO’s 256 sites .The post sites are critical to the digital deliveryRead… Read more »

Why is change so difficult in government?

Change is difficult in government because we are approaching it the wrong way. In order to change, we need to go from a problem-focused mindset to a solution-focused mindset. In Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard, the authors explain this concept as “pursuing the bright spots.” “To pursue bright spots is toRead… Read more »