All Blog Posts Tagged 'collaboration' (315)

In principle, when we look at people in certain ways, place labels on them, or “put them in boxes,” it limits what they have to offer. It is especially tempting to “contain” those who disagree with us. We’re tempted to ignore our adversaries, work around them, wall them off, shut them down. These techniques might help us win as individuals, but they work against making good group decisions.

In principle, the best group decisions come when we genuinely…

I always have to scratch my head at the curiosity of how the federal government operates in regards to budgetary matters. Although commercial best practices are all the rage in government, such as trying to leverage technologies and become more efficient, innovative, and agile, the one area that always seemed to be polar-opposite was the budget.

In line with its mission to ensure the careful use of Federal funds, OMB issued guidance on 5/11/12 to Federal agencies that requires them to make more efficient use of existing government real estate -- in effect, “freezing the Federal footprint.”   

In a roundabout way, this is good news for Telework fans. By requiring agencies to think about the best use of the space that they already have, it may also force them to think about alternatives – like encouraging employees to take…

One of the biggest reasons managers give for resisting the implementation of telework policies is that they do not believe that their employees will “really” work when they are not in the office. Those of us who have embraced a more flexible work design may consider this an “attitude adjustment” problem – on the part of the managers. But we really should take a closer look. An important aspect of a successful work environment is Trust. For telework to be successfully implemented, managers…

What are the key issues facing collaboration-minded managers in government?  Two thoughtful academics identify what they think are the Top Ten and offer some advice on areas for future research.

Drs. Rosemary O’Leary and Nidhi Vij presented a paper at the recent annual conference of the American Society for Public Administration, “Collaborative Public…

Are there legislative options beyond (or in addition to) presidential reorganization authority that could encourage collaboration and not just move boxes?

Typically, the cultural, administrative, and legal barriers to working together collaboratively inside the federal government are too high and they discourage efforts to collaborate (more on this in a future post).  The Obama Administration has taken some steps, such as the…

I was recently asked to present at an Institute For Employment Studies event for corporate HR and Heads of Learning & Development. The slides I used are embedded at the end of this bog, and also available at Slideshare and …

Should government use Legos to inspire its reorganization approach?

Structural reorganization initiatives – like the creation of the Department of Homeland Security -- are slow, take an enormous amount of effort, and require years to become effective.  Ultimately, the new structure becomes rigid and needs to be revisited.  Many observers advocate creating more adaptable approaches that allow a mix and match of capabilities.  What are some potential options for…

Would “virtual agencies” be an effective alternative to traditional structural reorganization initiatives? If so, what needs done to make them happen?

When Vice President Gore’s reinventing government team was being formed in the early 1990s, he encouraged it to not focus on reorganizing agencies and programs, but rather to fix what’s inside the agencies.  He also advocated the creation of “virtual agencies.”  At the time, no one really understood what he was talking…

The political winds are blowing favorably for government reorganization for the first time since Jimmy Carter’s efforts in the 1970s.  As a result, the conversation on government reorganization is shifting from “should we” to “how do we” reorganize.  What are some of the lessons from past efforts?

At one point, the advice was:  don’t do it head-on. . . . Vice President Gore’s directions to his reinventing government team in the 1990s were: “don’t move boxes, fix what’s…

One reason the word “telework” seems inadequate to describe how we want to change the workplace is that it suggests that our focus is only on how people can be effective when they work at home. But that’s not really what it’s all about.

The Workplace of the Future is about people working where, when, and how they work best. And sometimes that will actually be in the office. For this reason, it’s important that we give a thought to how our office space looks and whether it…

President Obama asked Congress for authority to reorganize government in his 2012 State of the Union address.  Several weeks later, he proposed legislation to do so.  What is in that bill?

What Is Presidential Reorganization Authority?

Beginning in 1932, presidents were periodically granted authority by Congress to submit plans to reorganize agencies.  Over time, it became increasingly limited in scope and when this authority expired in 1984,…

Last month, the Senate held a hearing on re-tooling government for the 21^st century. What’s the background behind recent pushes to reorganize the government and how do they different from perennial calls to do so over the past three decades that have gone no where?

The Senate hearing focused on recent…

To understand how organizations can succeed, let’s briefly recap the lessons from the first two parts of this series on organizational failure.

Part One –Framework for Analyzing Organizational Failure

1)    Every decision has unintended consequences for the future – latent conditions.

2)    Leaders often make decisions without a…

As we start the Second Annual Telework Week today, it’s a good time to think about boundaries and the challenge of  how we create a boundary between the professional and the personal when we work at home. The most obvious boundary can be created by the space in which we work. A home office, for those lucky enough to have one, can provide a separation from family activities. But we all need a psychological boundary as well, a way of keeping work time from bleeding into our personal time and…

CAP Goals with John Kamensky by cdorobek

The FY 2013 budget includes a new acronym, “CAP Goals,” which stands for Cross-Agency Priority Goals.  These goals stem from a new statutory requirement that the Office of Management and Budget identify and manage a small handful of cross-agency priority goals, covering both mission and…

CAP Goals with John Kamensky by cdorobek

How will the 14 newly-designated cross-agency priority goal leaders organize to achieve the goals they’ve committed to achieve?  There’s a practical guide book that can help.

The President’s FY 2013 budget announced the first set of cross-agency priority goals – seven focus…

Tele-Town Hall, LLC ™ is the creator and the leading provider of “telephone town hall” events. Tele-Town Hall™ events are the culmination of our nearly two decades of planning and testing to create an unparalleled breakthrough in LIVE, person-to-person communications. We currently provide thousands of elected officials, political candidates, non-profit…

In 1999, the reigning world chess champion played against 50,000 people through the Internet. Entitled “Kasparov versus the World,” chess players (experts and amateurs) collaborated to play the black pieces while Kasparov alone played the white pieces. Anyone can suggest a move, discuss the moves, and vote on moves. Whichever move received the highest vote was then sent in response to Kasparov’s moves.…

By Alex Moll, Communications Officer, eRulemaking Program Management Office

Executive Summary - This past month marked the one year anniversary of a significant Open Government milestone. One year ago, President Obama signed Executive Order 13563, "Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review." Since then its implementation appears on the pages of agency retrospective reviews,…