Leadership

Making Government Better, Faster and Simpler

First term Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton (Democrat), is focusing his administration on streamlining government operations. A worthy cause in my opinion and one that can be done at all levels of government. Some of the items Dayton is looking at according to a StarTribune news article are: – eliminating wasteful, redundant or antiquated laws byRead… Read more »

The Power of Commitment

“It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through.” – Zig Ziglar Below is an excerpt from the Scottish Himalayan Expedition by W.H. Murray. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back; always ineffectiveness. Concerning all actsRead… Read more »

“On My Watch” – Martha Johnson’s Book About Her GSA Time (and the GSA Scandal)

The Thanksgiving lull was a good time for me to read On My Watch. I had retired well before Martha Johnson became GSA Administrator. I was there however, in a high level position, when she was Chief of Staff to GSA Administrator David Barram. During Mr. Barram’s administration, GSA, in my opinion, underwent the mostRead… Read more »

Forget Cyber Monday – There is a holiday hiring spree

Ok, a hiring spree might be a bit of a stretch. But the government really is hiring. Despite all the bad publicity, the shutdown, the sequester, the pay freeze, the furloughs, the government really is looking to hire new talent on a daily basis. (You can check out GovLoop’s top job openings here.) However, thereRead… Read more »

SUCCESS RULE # 27 Practice Gratitude

The practice of gratitude as a tool for happiness has been in the mainstream for years. Long-term studies support gratitude’s effectiveness, suggesting that a positive, appreciative attitude contributes to greater success in work, greater health, peak performance in sports and business, a higher sense of well-being, and a faster rate of recovery from surgery. ButRead… Read more »

Even President Obama is sounding the procurement alarm

In last week’s Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Special Report, President Obama was asked what he has learned from the Healthcare.gov experience. In his response, he focused squarely on federal procurement problems, and particularly on the feds struggle in procuring IT, by stating, “[the] way the federal government does procurement and does IT is justRead… Read more »

Back to Basics: 6 Leadership Strategies for IT Professionals

We’ve seen how complex government IT projects are. From the healthcare.gov projects to countless small-scale initiatives, learning how to properly implement and deploy technology projects is a huge undertaking for government agencies. So where can we begin? It’s clear that dynamic leadership in the public sector is needed to successfully deploy and implement an ITRead… Read more »

A thank you note to all the govies – Plus your Thanksgiving Reads!

This past year has brought tremendous upheaval to the public sector. Sequestration slashed budgets, furloughs created backlogs and the shutdown shuttered progress. But through it all government employees stood tall and stuck to their mission. For that, we here at GovLoop’s DorobekINSIDER thank you. But it is not enough to just say thank you, no,Read… Read more »