Why Every Federal Agency Should Have A Chief Customer Officer

Chief Customer Officers (CCO) are becoming commonplace in the private sector, with more than 2,000 of these C-level execs in the US alone. Should federal agencies follow suit? The answer is unequivocally yes. As the only senior exec whose primary goal is to represent the interests of the customer, a CCO can help a federalRead… Read more »

Harness the Power of Unstructured HR Data with Text Analytics

Federal HR professionals with access to electronic employee databases typically have access to a wealth of so-called “structured” employee data, or information that can be quickly counted and analyzed in spreadsheet programs to create pivot tables and reports. Examples of structured HR data include employee salary and demographic information and employee survey responses, all ofRead… Read more »

These 9 Govies Got GIF Game

It’s no secret I love a good GIF. The animated images are an eye-catching way to quickly convey information and emotions. They work on almost every operating system, browser, website, and social media (except the frustrating holdout, Facebook). That’s why I made sure to watch DigitalGov’s recent webinar, “The Essentials of Animated GIFs for PublicRead… Read more »

How To Be Excellent!

Excelling is often defined as going above and beyond what’s expected. So in its very nature, achieving excellence is not something that should come easily. In government contracting, excelling is not something that’s common sense. It’s a complex task, and it takes teamwork and collaboration for government workers to understand the best ways of goingRead… Read more »

Ready to Quit? Try Fixing Your Job First

It’s one of those weeks – maybe one of those months – when you’re so overwhelmed and frustrated with work than you can barely see straight. Your inbox is swamped with inane requests, your boss just gave you a passive aggressive review, and if your coworker leaves her empty soda cans in the sink one more timeRead… Read more »

“Where Does Fed Money Go?” Using a Canonical Model to Find It

For decades, OMB and Departments have been trying to trace federal grants and loans to specific places: cities, neighborhoods, farms, enterprise zones, individual houses or stores. The complexity of community development, economic development, rural development, job creation, or just accounting have plagued how funds can be traced. The purpose of tracing the money is toRead… Read more »

4 Things I’ve Learned from “Murder She Wrote”

If you follow me on Twitter, you know that I’ve been captivated by the antics and misadventures of Murder, She Wrote’s protagonist, Jessica Fletcher. Dame Angela Lansbury, the actress behind the widowed bestselling mystery writer, keeps it real at every point of the series, which ran twelve seasons from 1984-1996. (So it’s just a littleRead… Read more »

3 Ways Digital Engagement is Changing Transportation

Government agencies tasked with the responsibility of keeping drivers and passengers safe on the road face daunting challenges every day. From finding new ways to increase awareness of the importance of cars seats and seat belts, to helping drivers avoid congestion and road closures, satisfying the ever-changing needs of today’s travelers can seem like an uphillRead… Read more »