The year of living helpfully

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paul_clarke/5381950736/)” src=”http://www.helpfultechnology.com/site/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/sg-at-govcamp-550×396.png” alt=”Me at govcamp (Photo: Paul Clarke – http://www.flickr.com/photos/paul_clarke/5381950736/)” width=”550″ height=”396″ /> It’s been 18 months since I last walked the mean streets of Westminster as a civil servant. There are things I miss about the old lifestyle: having the scope to run with projects on the ‘inside’, being in the loop on theRead… Read more »

Online Reputation Management, Personal Branding, Digital Footprints and SMM

Once in a while I like to analyze various search trends taking place in my industry. I do this primarily to see which terms are sticking and to gauge demand for specific business offerings. I first predicted a drastic rise in interest for “social media monitoring” information 4 years ago. Search for the term hasRead… Read more »

Teach the World about the World!

What if you had an awesome idea for how to use GIS, but needed a place to share it? What if you could present your idea to hundreds of people with a passion for GIS in a rapid-fire lightning talk? Well now you can! Esri’s Federal GIS Conference is coming to Wasington, DC on FeburaryRead… Read more »

Is Twitter Dying?

I’ve noticed a lot of “spam” followers on Twitter for the last few weeks, whereas I’ve never had any before. While I don’t get any direct negative effect from it, it makes me wonder if this is a symptom of Twitter being on the way out as one of the social media platforms to use.

Social Networking in Government Agencies: Pipedream or Imminent Reality?

How your organization can adopt social media tools internally to drive results and become a social business. Wading into Social Media The terms “enterprise social networking” or “social media” often conjure up images of hip, savvy startups. But many of you are on the forefront of using applications like GovLoop to share best practices andRead… Read more »

Defining & Communicating Expectations: A Critical Component of a Healthy Workplace

I believe the number one cause of conflict in both the workplace and your personal life is unfulfilled expectations. The number one reason for expectations going unfulfilled is – you guessed it – nobody knows what they are. We are diligent in ensuring that a high level of detail, complete with key performance indicators, areRead… Read more »

How do people get information about their community?

Http://LeonardSipes.Com I listen to a lot of tech-related podcasts on my daily commute via train every day. If one listens to the pundits the social world is the near future and traditional methods of communication will be permanently left behind. The observations are limited but understandable considering the well-documented decline in traditional media use. There’sRead… Read more »

RWJF Joins SXSW Accelerator Panel

Remember back in October when Chris Hall introduced the SXSW Health Accelerator program for next year’s conference? I’m really looking forward to seeing what start-ups get to showcase their stuff. I’m even more excited about the increase in health focused innovations occurring at the biggest conference that I’ve ever attended. Last year was the debutRead… Read more »

Water Main Break Clock

The Uni-Bell PVC Pipe Association has set up a Watermain Break Clock site showing real time numbers and costs of water main breaks. According to the information posted, there are 850 water main breaks that occur each day in North America. A quick search on Twitter gives us a snapshot of just a few ofRead… Read more »

Is there a need for public service reform?

Some would say the answer is obvious. But it’s always worth remembering that processes seemingly designed to frustrate the customer are not limited by sector or organisation. Here’s a tale of convoluted customer service with rather a surprising punchline. Though here is another, more seasonal, story which shows another approach altogether. Original post

Communications