Steve VanRoekel spent some three years as the federal Chief Information Office. He has now moved on to serve as chief innovation officer at USAID assisting with the administration’s response to the Ebola outbreak. In one of his last interviews as federal CIO, Steve joined me on The Business of Government Hour to reflect onRead… Read more »
Do your meetings have a creative killer? Newsrooms call them “story killers,” the naysayers at meetings who repeatedly shoot down stories while unsuspecting victims are trying to generate new ideas. Creative killers assassinate ideas, breeding fear and limiting impact for hundreds, maybe even thousands. These idea deaths never get investigated and their potential never getsRead… Read more »
Our top budgeting, forecasting and business analytics posts for the public sector from the week of September 12th!
“Trust but verify” was President Ronald Reagan’s mantra during the Cold War. But today, “trust” is a key element to creating effective cross-agency networks to get things done. But what, exactly, is “trust,” and how do you know what to look for? Increasingly, addressing public management challenges requires the use of collaborative networks across aRead… Read more »
Many of the people I know who work in the public sector were drawn to their jobs by this desire to serve, to make a difference in their community or the country. After landing that first desk job though, I have also seen them lose their drive. If you’ve ever done it, you know, sittingRead… Read more »
There’s No “I” in Team – But There is a “ME”! Why Teamwork is Overrated Let’s all work together! Sounds great, right? Well, sometimes it is. But if you want to create an environment where creativity, imaginative problem solving, and attention to detail flourishes, you may need to let some of your team members workRead… Read more »
In advance of the Afghan Presidential election run-off scheduled for June 14, Larry Sampler, assistant to the USAID Administrator for Afghanistan and Pakistan join me on The Business of Government to explore how USAID has sought to promote stability and order in Afghanistan and what is USAID’s three-fold transition strategy. The following is an excerptRead… Read more »
Cloud based communication and collaboration services help you ease into the daunting world of cloud-based services by using the most mature product. These products offer rich features at a low price without the hassle of managing the infrastructure. The major players are Google Apps for Government and Microsoft Office 365. I have used both andRead… Read more »
When you read about getting ahead in life, many times you’ll hear people discussing cutthroat options, ruthlessness, or other ways of dealing with the competition. But we really think that it’s actually collaboration that’s the key to success. Oftentimes, being a member of a collaborative group pushes members to excel, and make them feel likeRead… Read more »
There is a pocket of space where the government and industry are working together – and doing it well. Seriously. This is not one of my (always very funny) jokes. Collaboration really is at work between federal employees and their industry counterparts. The great news? The partnerships are totally above board. Every year the AmericanRead… Read more »