With a population of less than 5,000 and a median household income of around $50,000, Manor, Texas, is an unlikely place to find the cutting edge of government e-participation technologies. But thanks to a young and enterprising Assistant City Manager (Dustin Haisler, now of Spigit), Manor has attracted significant investment from a variety of firmsRead… Read more »
When people talk about government innovation the discussion tends to revolve around new projects, new buildings and new technologies that the public sector either should be creating or should be directly investing in. But one of the most potentially breakthrough innovations that our government could do to be a Gov 2.0 leader in arts andRead… Read more »
Here’s the scenario. You have an idea. You’re passionate about it. But the deeper you go into the intricacies and start socializing it with others, the more you start finding flaws, holes, and ultimately decide you’ve simply gone off your rocker. Friends, this is a classic example of how you’ve invited conventional wisdom to dinnerRead… Read more »
“Predominantly… because of the internet an enormous shift has taken place in society. Everybody can get to knowledge”. Martijn Aslander speaks about Accessibility to knowledge in the network economy and a new world of work for the government. ”I want to move things. Paper does not move people.” The past five days of Open InnovationRead… Read more »
Another day at the National League of Cities Congress and Exposition, another opportunity for insight. Right now, I’m in a workshop being led by Patrick Ibarra entitled “How To Inject Innovation into Local Government.” Ibarra is the Co-Founder and Partner of The Mejorando Group based in Glendale, Arizona. Here are some of my notes fromRead… Read more »
Is your city facing a fiscal crisis? I imagine so. We are at a critical point where most local governments are not able to provide the same services they could just five years ago. And it’s not just a fiscal crisis; it’s also an identity crisis, as city residents change how they communicate, how theyRead… Read more »
One of the things I have realized, sometimes painfully so, is that within the innovation management discipline how much of that takes place is change management, not innovation. In fact, the innovation management aspect is easier, in my opinion. The change management part within the broad public sector is difficult for everyone to tackle, especiallyRead… Read more »
These past two weeks have been a whirlwind of travel and conferences. I’ve enjoyed several typical byproducts of those types of events (networking, learning, etc…) but also a few things that are much rarer: inspiration and re-energized passion. This is largely thanks to my most recent stop: NASA’s Education Innovation Summit, held in Orlando, FLRead… Read more »
Alice Lipowicz of Federal Computer Week wrote an interesting article about different government contests going on – some very successful, some not so much: http://fcw.com/articles/2010/10/04/low-participation-ssa-contest-remedies.aspx?sc_lang=en I expect we’ll be seeing more of this trend, so if you’re planning to try this approach, I’d like to offer some advice on how to ensure your organization’s contestsRead… Read more »
Take a moment and look around your personal office space. Now look at your computer and notice what your desktop icons are and what programs you have open. According to Richard Ogle, the books, documents, computer programs, and other work aids are parts of our extended mind. We create documents, spreadsheets, whatever to offload ourRead… Read more »