Volunteering: A Fed’s Guide to Giving Back
How does one find the time to volunteer during this holiday season when schedules are packed with so many other requirements?
Leadership
Leadership in Action
From forging a unity of effort in homeland security to strategizing today how to field the U.S. Army of tomorrow; to pursuing affordable housing, eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse in healthcare, and securing cyberspace, our most recent issue of The Business of Government magazine delves into a diverse set of topics and public management issuesRead… Read more »
The ABCs of Encouraging Each Other: Creating Better Relationships
If you’re like me, you take so much for granted….your freedom, your coworkers, your relationships. Here are the basics of keeping your coworkers encouraged.
5 Tips on How to Have A Tough Conversation At Work
We’ve probably all been a part of difficult conversations that went spectacularly wrong. There were meltdowns, hard feelings – maybe even ruined relationships. Because of this it can be hard to want to bring up a difficult subject when the need arises. We brace ourselves for confrontation, and put off the conversation as long as… Read more »
What I Learned About Working in Government from Long Distance Running
When I’m not saving the world as a federal government employee, I enjoy long distance running. My relatively short legs do not quite paint the picture of an elegant, gazelle-like runner, but I have laser-like determination, a “never quit” attitude, and perseverance for days. When I run, I am able to tune out many everydayRead… Read more »
The Leadership Strengths of Introverts
It’s no secret that extroverts hold the majority of leadership roles in the professional world. When you call to mind a high level executive, you probably picture someone with an outgoing personality and commanding presence, instead of a quiet, reflective individual. A USA Today study even found that 65 percent of senior level managers believeRead… Read more »
Leadership Development and Selection in a VUCA World
Likely you’ve heard the term VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity) and, perhaps, some agencies have begun utilizing the acronym in long-term strategic planning. But have you thought about its application in leadership selection and development? Here are some considerations to think about. Recently, at an international conference relating to assessment center methods, I listenedRead… Read more »
How to Lead Your Team Out of a Blamestorm
Your team is talking about a tough slog of a project that hasn’t been going well. Milestones have slipped. Deliverables haven’t been delivered. Rather than determining how you can move forward together, your team is fixated on finding someone to blame for what went wrong. Tempers flare as everyone points their finger at everyone else…. Read more »
Hip Hip Hurray for Technology in Government!
Oftentimes we remember all the bad experiences- the mistakes. The bad can obscure the good. But it is critical for employee morale and an agencies’ health to talk about the wins. One of those government cheerleaders is Brian Baker, Industry Chief for the ACT-IAC’s (American Council for Technology and the Industry Advisory Council) Excellence.Gov AwardsRead… Read more »
Tools for Your Success
The productivity of a business, no matter the size, largely depends on the level of efficiency. In most cases, even huge businesses tend to have a chaotic organization. For instance, a common issue that leads to gross inefficiency is activity duplication. Another form of inefficiency is inconsistencies in task allocation to staff members. In most cases,Read… Read more »