Human Resources

The Senate Salutes Federal Employees

Well, not the entire Senate, yet. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) recently introduced a bill called the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) which would give federal employees a 3.3 percent pay raise in 2015. The proposed pay raise is welcomed news for Federal employees. Federal employees have endured a lot over theRead… Read more »

Fast Tracking New Employees – The Penn Way

When you start a new job the onboarding process can seem endless. You have your technology trainings, security trainings, even getting your email set up can take a day or two to get set up. Seriously. Pennsylvania is working to streamline the onboarding process by going digital. “The state set up an online onboarding programRead… Read more »

The Grey Tsunami Problem: Why It’s Really About Communication

The “grey tsunami” was a big topic at my agency a few years back. The expectation was that up to 70% of the agency’s workforce would take early retirement. Massive amounts of tacit knowledge would be lost. In preparation, my team attempted to “crowdsource” the knowledge of the experienced staff. We wanted to convert thatRead… Read more »

Alan Balutis Talks Potential New Legislation

Everyone is talking about IT reform – but does anyone know how to implement it? Doesn’t seem like it. It’s like your friend who just learned a new word but constantly keeps using it incorrectly. Legislators just learned about IT procurement, but don’t have the knowledge to apply it well. Many CIOs, however, have ideasRead… Read more »

Government is Hiring! But Where?

While it may appear that the size of the federal workforce has shrunk to the size of a thumbtack, many agencies are still looking to hire bright candidates. But the changing economy has forced management to alter their hiring process in favor of a more strategic one. Hiring employees is no longer isolated as anRead… Read more »

Don’t Have Any Work To Do?

  After reading a recent article from Government Executive, This May Be the Worst Abuse of Federal Telework Ever, I started reflecting on who is at fault when government agencies waste your tax dollars. The article talked about how several employees at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) were spending their telework days doingRead… Read more »

Becoming a Digital Organization: A Three-Phase Journey

There are three main phases to becoming a digital organization: digitization, digital engagement, and digital transformation. This post offers a lay oriented description and assessment of these phases. The objective is to help leaders who are digital rookies develop a conceptual foundation for understanding where their organizations have been, where they are, and – mostRead… Read more »