Weekly Round-up: June 29, 2012

Gadi Ben-Yehuda

• Wil workplaces become more gray-friendly? Andrew Krzmarzick asks “What If the Workplace Had More 70-Somethings? Because It Will…” and goes on to list some of the important issues that the changing demographics of the workplace raise. Quite a few people respond.
• EPA’s Got (new e-) Mail. In the same week that Nora Ephron passed away, EPA CIO Malcom Jackson announced that his agency will be overhauling their entire email system within this calendar year. The push is meant to incorporate mobile technologies and ease collaboration.
• Working Together to Create Knowledge. Alex Howard writes on GovFresh about a collaboration among New York City, Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia to improve their predictive data analytics capabilities. Wyatt Kash writes on AOL about the new partnership between IBM and Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL) to use supercomputers for (among other things) predictive data analytics in real time. Bonus: you get to read about Vulcans, Squioas, and petaflops.

Dr. John Bordeaux

• Early indications of cost savings or “ROI” should be taken with a grain of salt. These numbers are almost always revised down the road. Still, the trend appears positive for the early adopters for Cloud. Pay attention to GSA.
• This headline is misleading – it’s hardly the genesis of the ‘hive mind,’ but wearable computing does bring some promise. At some point, and that point is coming soon; we will have to adapt and thrive despite near-constant distraction. Look for backlash, but progress towards a different way of thinking.
• This profile of the late Second Lady provides an interesting window into a near-distant past.

Dan Chenok

• How do you lead a cross-agency team?
• OMB releases guidance on regulatory reduction.
• IT Spending moves toward op-ex and away from cap-ex.
• Bring Your Own Device may become the norm?
• Agencies get free services and products from DHS to monitor networks for cyber issues.

John Kamensky

• Using Analytics to Improve Customer Service. Federal News Radio’s Taeja Smith provides a progress report on how agency initiatives, such as Business.USA.gov, are improving customer service by using customer satisfaction data to gauge progress and develop priorities and strategies.
• Reforming the SES to be More Results-Oriented. The Washington Post’s Timothy Smith reports that Cong. James Moran is introducing legislation (H.R. 6042) to reform the Senior Executive Service The bill not only addresses pay incentives, but also career management and the SES hiring process.
• Cutting VA Regional Staff. Federal Times’ Sean Reilly reports that the Department of Veterans Affairs has announced plans to cut regional headquarters staff. Over the past 15 years, regional staff grew from 220 to 1,700.
• Comptroller General Plugs Need for Intergovernmental Collaboration. In a presentation to the Biennial Forum of Government Auditors, Comptroller General Gene Dodaro outlines the fiscal pressures facing governments at all levels and ways that greater collaboration can help agencies cope with longer-term fiscal austerities. It’s a long slide presentation, but there are lots of interesting factoids.

Michael Keegan

• Admiral Robert Papp – Leading the U.S. Coast Guard: Strategic Vision, Steadying the Service, and Working in the Arctic – With more than 220 years of service to the nation, the U.S. Coast Guard is a military, multi-mission maritime organization that safeguards the U.S. economic and security interests. From the oil platforms of the northern Arabian Gulf to the interior rivers, to an increasingly open and accessible Arctic, the Coast Guard ensures the safety, security, and stewardship of our maritime domain.
• NEW Spring/Summer 2012 – The Business of Government Magazine – This edition of The Business of Government magazine provides a glimpse into the many challenges, risks, and opportunities facing today’s government executives. More importantly, it introduces a select group of government leaders who offer their insights, outline successes, and tell us how they, in their own unique way, are making a difference in an era of fiscal austerity.
• State CIO Swart stepping down for IMF post
• CHCO recommends employee-sharing as budget salve
• DHS hones dynamic approach to securing agency computer networks

The Business of Government Radio Show: Letitia A. Long

Federal News Radio 1500-AM
Mondays at 11 a.m., Wednesdays at 12 p.m.

The Business of Government Hour features a conversation about management with a government executive who is changing the way government does business. The executives discuss their careers and the management challenges facing their organizations.

Ms. Letitia A. Long was appointed Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency on August 9, 2010 She was selected into the Senior Intelligence Executive Service in July 1994, dual-hatted as the Director, Requirements, Plans, Policy, and Programs Office for the Navy intelligence staff, as well as the Director of Resource Management for the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI). From 1994 to 1996

Broadcast Schedule: The show airs Monday, July 02, at 11 a.m., and Wednesday, July 04, at noon, on Federal News Radio 1500AM WFED

If you can’t wait, though, you can listen to (or download) this week’s program and all our previous interviews at businessofgovernment.org and by searching our audio archives.