Federal Eye: Cabinet Nominees Discuss the Rank and File

While Senate confirmation hearings have focused mostly on major policy issues of concern, The Eye – with the assistance of washingtonpost.com’s Sarah Lovenheim and intern Ethan Klapper – also reviewed the hearing transcripts for comments about the federal workforce. Workplace and employee issues were not discussed at every confirmation hearing, but several nominees voiced theirRead… Read more »

Federal Eye: Tips on Presidential Appointments

As observers and presidential transition veterans can attest, Inauguration Day marks an important and highly visible transfer of power, but does not signal the end of a transition. Some of the most important aspects of the transfer of power happen after Jan. 20 as the new administration fills hundreds of critical assistant and deputy secretaryRead… Read more »

Microsoft FutureFed: Is there another option for Obama when it comes to mobile e-mail?

There has been a fair amount of speculation around whether or not President-elect Obama will choose to (or even be able to) use a mobile device, as he’s accustomed to doing, once he takes the oath of office. As we saw during his campaign, traditional ways of getting things done will likely be challenged andRead… Read more »

Don’t Shut Down Car Wash Fundraiser in Your City – Keep them Responsible to NPDES Permits – By Lance Winslow

Car Wash Fundraisers need not be shut down for violations to the local NPDES permits and affluent waste wash-water runoff. Rather, local government officials should help the local non-profit groups comply with their local NPDES permits by offering suggestions to prevent pollution run-off. In this free eBook below; http://www.carwashguys.com/fundraisers/LAschools.html I offer suggestions and BMPs (bestRead… Read more »

IT Strategy

I’ve been noticing the great conversations people are having here about how to use IT in their agencies, and I added some thoughts of my own here, at FedBlog. An excerpt appears below, and I’m only sorry I wrote it before Marcus Peacock wrote his great posts on blogging as a place to solicit commentsRead… Read more »

2009 iGov Research Institute, University of Washington and Seattle,

Sharon Dawes informs me that doctoral students from all countries are invited to apply for this week-long, intensive residential program on the impact of information and communication technologies on government and governance. The iGov Research Institute is a program of the Center for Technology in Government at the University at Albany/SUNY and is supported byRead… Read more »

On Change and Using a Blog to Write a Rule

My mother was born two weeks before Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic. She has witnessed amazing changes in her life: the advent of air transportation, the proliferation of television, the near eradication of scourges like small pox and polio, men walking on the moon, the internet. Yet when I asked her how she felt about theseRead… Read more »

Using Social Networks to Tackle Government Budget Crises

Social networks have gained wide acceptance and praise for their use in political campaigns. It’s their use in actual government administration and public policy making environments where their absence is fueling new debate. As a solution for government-citizen communication, they can be a powerful forum for collaboration. Still, social networks remain a rarity, if atRead… Read more »