Citizen Engagement

Four Approaches to Crowdsourcing

Is this a Golden Age for citizen involvement in government? As dismayed as some may be with the political process, there are growing opportunities for meaningful engagement in many areas, thanks to growing social media tools and a willingness to participate by many ordinary people. Gavin Newscom is California’s lieutenant governor, and was formerly theRead… Read more »

Hacking towards a solution – 7 elements of a successful gov hackathon

The Digital Government Strategy, the Open Data Directive, the Open Data policy and the Open Data Partnership agreement are all pushing agencies to find new ways to jumpstart innovation. Hackathons are the easiest and cheapest way to do that. The idea is simple, get a bunch of smart and talented programmers together, provide them withRead… Read more »

Is the citizen CIO taking over government IT?

Are citizen CIOs a threat to local governments or a blessing in disguise? With government IT departments producing more open data and participation from community interest groups and citizens on the rise, we’re beginning to see the start of a new movement within open government: telling our government which technologies to deploy. Citizens are identifying—andRead… Read more »

Looking for Knowledge? Here’s Your GovLoop Research Digest

Happy Monday, GovLoop! First off, thanks for all you do in government, the innovative work you’re all doing to improve our communities, especially in a time of such uncertainty and the difficult challenges you must overcome daily. Yet, even though times are tough – it’s inspiring at GovLoop to hear all the great stories ofRead… Read more »

7 Ways to Get Innovation Right

It seems everywhere you look these days agencies are talking about the value of innovation. The need for innovation. The power of innovation. But taking the concept of innovation and making it a reality can be a big challenge, especially during the sequester. But actually fostering innovation can be a huge challenge. Seth Kahan. KahanRead… Read more »

Best Practices for Government Customer Service

Providing an exceptional customer service experience is a key element of running any organization, from large corporations to non-profits to government agencies. Government agencies have to deal with issues raised by the public every day and be able to respond to constituents in an efficient manner. While seemingly a straightforward task, customer relations is aRead… Read more »

What Civic Innovation Looks Like Today and Tomorrow

Philadelphia has hired its first ever Director of Civic Technology. San Francisco, Boston and New York already have them. But what exactly do they do? And what about cities that can’t afford to have their own Civic Innovation Officers or Innovation hubs? Alissa Black is the Director of the California Innovation Project at the NewRead… Read more »

Mobility at the State and Local Level

“We are not a ‘for profit’ business, we are a ‘for service’ business” – Brent Nair, City of Memphis Last week, Cisco and Consero hosted their Virtual Government IT Forum, the first in a series of online discussions between state and local government visionaries. The focus on the online session (which you can still viewRead… Read more »