In my last blog I mentioned an episode with our learned GSA counsel over donuts. That was not my only conflict with Sweet Caroline, Esq. over donuts. Yes, these events really happened. Caroline devoted much of her career to assuring that no government employee ever violated any ethical standards, no matter how much this policyRead… Read more »
Photo: Space shuttle Endeavor launches on the STS-134 mission to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA——————- This might have been the last launch of Space Shuttle Endeavor, but it wasn’t the first time that NASA has used online video to broadcast a space shuttle launch to the world. NASA streams video of NASA TVRead… Read more »
My most recent post at WhoRunsGov: Social media is here to stay, and most, if not all, of the Hill leadership is aware of its ever-increasing presence. In the House, the GOP leadership has not only recognized its importance, but has come up with a pretty creative way of encouraging its members to increase theirRead… Read more »
Rahm Emanuel will be sworn in today as mayor of Chicago. The Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman has Q&A’s with the future mayor, three of which are about his famous temper. Emanuel eventually responded: “It’s not anger. It’s drive to get results to do something with this. . . . I will drive myself harder than IRead… Read more »
I still haven’t really got my head around mobile apps and their use for government services. However, James Coltham wrote up some excellent notes from a meeting up in Scotland on the subject recently: There is definitely a groundswell of interest, though, as well as a growing demand from the public, making for interesting timesRead… Read more »
Having been inside many governmental organizations, I can tell you that it will take a LOT more effort to get people to change. One of oft misunderstood positives of a government organization is that they aren’t driven by profit or the bottom line. Sometimes lethargy can actually be good in a giant and vast bureaucracy.Read… Read more »
Geospatial technology has become a reality of everyday life. We map out locations on Google, send tweets with geotags, and find food trucks nearby (especially the last one). But increasingly, these capabilities are proving to have profound potential for reshaping how government delivers services. With that in mind, the National Academy of Public Administration willRead… Read more »
About 10 years ago, I helped a colleague build a case that managing government websites is “inherently governmental.” A-76 (OMB Circular A-76: Performance of Commercial Activities) was rearing its head again, and some agencies were asking the question: could web management be done more efficiently and effectively by the private sector? A few agency webRead… Read more »
Yesterday I witnessed something digital. I witnessed A Shiny World. I watched Life in a Day. On the 24th July 2010 80,000 people filmed their lives on assorted devices and submitted them – responding to a call made on YouTube for people to shrink the world and share their lives. Just ordinary lives. Nothing special,Read… Read more »
People pretty regularly put out calls for position descriptions, skills needed, interview questions, etc. for social media specialists. I suppose some folks have them, but let’s use the power of social media to identify what it takes to lead social media for an agency. Wisdom of the crowd, anyone? For this post, we’ll discuss theRead… Read more »