Project Management

The Brigade Effect

People aren’t just watching, talking, and tweeting about civic technology–they are acting! Over the week of February 25 – May 4, passionate citizens around the country came together to “Code Across America.” Eight events were organized by the 2012 Fellows and eight events were organized by civic leaders in other cities as part of theRead… Read more »

A Porsche, a K-Car and a Donkey walk into an organization…

4 Steps to Successful Enterprise Software Implementations At a recent public sector conference, I watched a few senior executives from different geographies get into an animated discussion about enterprise software. Despite their differences, these executives shared one common problem – the never ending implementation and the ballooning price tag of their enterprise software project. InRead… Read more »

Free Microsoft Cloud Computing For University Scientists

Mark Drapeau (Washington, DC) – Microsoft and Internet2 have announced a new agreement enabling member universities to take advantage of Windows Azure to open up collaborative, instructional and research opportunities in the cloud. The announcement was made at the recent Spring 2012 Internet2 Member Meeting in Arlington, VA. This agreement is a significant step inRead… Read more »

Federal Conference on Diversity: Real commitment is key for change

Why are we still asking the same questions and exploring the same issues? What needs to be different? This is how Sharon Fitzpatrick opened her discussion, “Diversity and Inclusion”, during today’s Federal Conference on Diversity. “We have the wrong conversations about the right things – lack of commitment, unwillingness for change, lack of resources,” sheRead… Read more »

Daily Dose: Would More Female Agents have Discouraged Cartagena Shenanigans?

Can a lack of workforce diversity lead to on-the-job shenanigans? That’s the question the Washington Post asked in regards to the Secret Service prostitution scandal, and how few women are employed as special agents. Only 11% of special agents are women; some Congresswomen think this lack of diversity could have contributed to the poor decisionsRead… Read more »

A Question About Questions

When you ask a question, are you trying to change your understanding…or theirs? Teaching by asking questions can cause learning breakthroughs. Too often I see people trying to manipulate others, which can backfire spectacularly. I ask a lot of questions because I genuinely want a better understanding, not for the other person, for me. RecentlyRead… Read more »

Success Factors In Federal Business Development

How hard can it be to do federal business development? All you need is to be good with people and a willingness to talk to decision makers, right? If it were so easy, why for years has BD been given a bad name, and why have many companies struggled to hire business developers who produceRead… Read more »