If you somehow haven’t heard of Yelp, it’s a website and app where anyone can review just about anything. People mostly seem to head to Yelp when they’re busting to share their glowing praise or their boiling rage. Now, as announced by DigitalGov, Yelp has a terms of service for official government use. Agencies can claim orRead… Read more »
One of the toughest parts of being a manager is delivering constructive feedback to your employees. You have to strike a delicate balance between putting them on the defensive, and being so vague that your feedback doesn’t sink in. How do you make sure your feedback gets heard – and taken to heart? Much dependsRead… Read more »
I represented the agency’s tourism office at the Ohio State Fair this past weekend. What a ride (in a literal and figurative sense). We discussed our strategies and goals to ensure consistent messaging. At the fair, we presented our newest calendar of events, hiking maps, and travel guides. Some tech-savvy users download the app on-site.Read… Read more »
While we are not in control of the conversation, government workers can still listen and contribute to it. We can seed it with facts and ideas. We can respond to questions. We can be human, even as we maintain a thoughtful and focused public presence. All by leveraging the power of online communications.
Last week I got a Facebook message from a friend from another agency that I’d known for 25 years. Like me, she’s approaching the end of her career in the federal government. In her message, she just wanted to say “hi,” update me on life events, and say thanks for being a friend. We neverRead… Read more »
Whether it is driving down the road, jumping in the shower, or walking out the door for a romantic night on the town; inspiration seems to strike at exactly the wrong time! By incorporating a few technologies, you can harness those strokes of genius and be ready for them, whenever they hits.
Continuing my review of federal agency/department use of social media, this week I’m looking at Twitter (missed the Facebook review last week? Check it out here). After reviewing more than 100 Twitter feeds, I learned a lot. Some agencies tweet too much. I know a lot of that is personal preference, but I find itRead… Read more »
This is my twice yearly public service blog about Restaurant Week in DC (August 17-23). Do you take advantage of this? Restaurant Week takes place twice a year, once in the frigid cold of the post-holidays and then again in the dog days of August. Times when diners are likely to be few. For allRead… Read more »
“Are there places in America where the outwardly self-virtuous might be able to act in a not-so-obviously-seen amount of on-the-job mischief, and not get caught? Jorge Martinez-Vasquez admits in his world-acclaimed book, Fighting Corruption in the Public Sector, that “corruption is notoriously hard to measure in a precise way.” Findings presented within this report may… Read more »
Bike commuters. We come in all shapes and sizes, in clothing ranging from business casual to spandex, and on a variety of bicycles. The logistics behind it aren’t always obvious to onlookers so questions come up. Hopefully providing answers will encourage more people to join us on the road. 1. Why do you bike toRead… Read more »