Communications

The Why of Social Media (part 2)

When thinking about citizen and employee engagement and how we can all work together to address complex issues such as climate change, homelessness and healthcare, to name a few, consider what motivates people and how we can enable them to do what they do best: contribute. Understanding human motivation is the foundation of improving citizenRead… Read more »

Government Shutdown—A Pain or A Crisis?

Government shutdown. It isn’t a natural disaster, but it surely could be considered a crisis. As a communications consultant I’ve heard stories from counterparts across the agencies talk about their approaches in dealing with the possible government shutdown. With each discussion the same question comes up, “How do you prepare for a specific event whenRead… Read more »

Friday Fab Five: Social Media Ninjas, Shutdown Rockstars, or National Champs- Which are you?

Shutdown Got You Down? It’s time to take a quick break for the… Friday Fab Five! Yes, it is a stressful day for many to say the least, but it’s also Friday, which means it’s time to take a look back at the week’s accomplishments. The Most Commented Blog of the Week goes to SteveRead… Read more »

Happy One Year Anniversary! A Year of Progress in Open Government

Though it’s being overshadowed by the budget discussions this week, it’s important to note (and celebrate!) that today (April 7th) is the one year anniversary of Agency Open Government Plans. Just one year ago, almost 30 plans were released from cabinet-level and independent Agencies that detailed how they would become more: Transparent in their work;Read… Read more »

Top Ten Strategies on Facilitating Career Conversations

This month’s “Top 10 Strategies” centers on the importance of managers having career conversations with employees. Surveys confirm that 4 out of 5 American workers are unsatisfied with their companies’ retention efforts and 3 out of 4 are not satisfied with future career growth opportunities at their company. Furthermore, half of all workers are unsatisfiedRead… Read more »

When Mother Nature Roars, Utilize GIS.

Recent geographical events like the earthquakes and tsunami that have hit Japan prove that we can’t stop Mother Nature. All we can do is know how to prepare, and how to react when doing battle with natural forces. GIS gathers and analyzes important geographical information. It tells a story and can better prepare us forRead… Read more »

Research and Best Practices eNewsletter

Research Tools for Idea Generation (03/2011) – A new guide from the National Academy of Public Administration’s Collaboration Project compares the function and purpose of 10 idea-generation tools. The guide helps leaders select a technology that fits the specific needs of their citizen engagement projects. http://www.collaborationproject.org/tools-for-online-idea-generation/ Millennial Generation the Next Big Thing (03/24/2011) – AsRead… Read more »

Austin City Limits: What’s Holding Back Government Innovation in Austin, Texas?

***Part of our month-long series on Creating a Digital City with PDF – Check out all our analysis*** As municipalities across the country are exploring how to use the Internet to make theirs better places to live, some winning combinations of talent, policy and technology are beginning to emerge — as are problems with otherRead… Read more »

Recruitment 411: Don’t talk about it, tweet about it.

Thanks to Twitter, it’s as easy to keep up with your favorite celebrity as it is to stay in touch with your best friend. An estimated 200 million users send more than 65 million tweets every day. These days, if you want people to talk about it, you should tweet about it. Our Twitter approachRead… Read more »