I first wrote a blog post called “Make Time to Lead,” more than 5 years ago; and I’ve written several variations on that theme since then. It’s a lesson I learned first-hand, as I managed HUD’s web program and co-chaired the Federal Web Managers Council. It’s easy to get so inundated in process that youRead… Read more »
The federal web manager community has been hollering – rightly – about the uncontrolled proliferation of federal government websites for at least 7 years. We’ve known we can’t possibly manage all that content effectively. We’ve known there’s duplication and redundancy. We’ve known that a huge percentage of our web content is written poorly, making itRead… Read more »
I’ve been thinking about how citizens might use mobile devices to get government services for…well…years. Sam Gallagher and I started talking about making web content usable on mobile devices way back in 2000, when we were teaching HUD’s partners how to create customer-friendly websites. Mobile apps are here to stay, and it’s a great timeRead… Read more »
Last week, the White House announced a new initiative to get a handle on the rampant proliferation of government websites. They put a 90-day freeze on granting any new top level domains (e.g., www.hud.gov), and they are requiring all agencies to review their websites and determine those that can be abolished, consolidated, and/or improved. AgenciesRead… Read more »
If I were you, government Web Manager, I’d be lobbying for a new job. Things have changed over the past 15 years, and I think it’s time for Web Managers to evolve accordingly. In the mid-90s, when we first became “Web Managers,” the federal government still saw itself as “wholesale, not retail.” Its customers wereRead… Read more »
I enjoyed Steve Radick’s blog post on Govloop about implementing the Plain Writing Act. Steve speculates that it will take years (actually, he says “decades) to implement the Act. He gives several reasons, and they’re all good. I’ve read a number of opinion pieces about the new CustomerService Executive Order, saying, “Yeah, yeah, yeah –Read… Read more »
About 10 years ago, I helped a colleague build a case that managing government websites is “inherently governmental.” A-76 (OMB Circular A-76: Performance of Commercial Activities) was rearing its head again, and some agencies were asking the question: could web management be done more efficiently and effectively by the private sector? A few agency webRead… Read more »
Yesterday, April 27, 2011, President Obama issued an Executive Order: Streamlining Service Delivery and Improving Customer Service. In a nutshell, it directs agencies to develop and monitor customer service plans and measures and to solicit customer feedback to improve service. It calls for agencies to use technology to streamline customer service and to emulate practicesRead… Read more »
I had an interesting discussion with an esteemed colleague about my last blog post on making sure portal sites add value. One of my suggestions was to adopt a common design and publication standards across all agencies covered by the portal. He said, “Here’s a fact…every government entity will do what is in its bestRead… Read more »
I remember when I first heard the term, “portal.” The concept of a home page that would aggregate links to content from other sites around themes made so much sense to me. Indeed, it was a huge step in the right direction – more than 10 years ago. Today – many years later – customers’Read… Read more »