Yesterday, my colleague Emily and I took a field trip to Gaithersburg, MD to visit the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The agency, along with US Ignite, hosted the Global City Team Challenge Tech Jam which partners government leaders with innovators tackling civic problems with cyber-physical systems (CPS). CPS are physical objects–anything from parking metersRead… Read more »
While at the “Designing Great Maps for Web and Mobile” session at the Esri Federal GIS Conference, the importance of color as a tool to engage non-GIS users in maps and stories was a highlight of the discussion. Different colors can be used to make certain elements stand out while too many colors can causeRead… Read more »
The following blog post is an excerpt from a recent GovLoop resource: Your Guide to Using Everything-as-a-Service. In the guide, we explore how agencies can maximize the benefits of cloud technology by creating a holistic everything-as-a-service (XaaS) strategy. An interview with Darren House, Director of Solution Management at Avnet Government Solutions Cloud is now the aggregationRead… Read more »
These were the words of a career procurement specialist who shall remain unnamed, at an agency that shall remain unnamed, as the point is not to embarrass an individual or agency so much as it is to identify an attitude that is all too widespread in the federal procurement and contract management world. And ifRead… Read more »
I’ve been following the scandal surrounding NBC news anchor Brian Williams and judging by the huge amount of constant news coverage, I’m definitely not the only one. In fact, it all sort of reminds me of a slow-motion car crash that’s really hard to stop looking at. I’ve heard and read several different opinions aboutRead… Read more »
This week, I attended a 3-day federal supervisory/managerial training class on building and sustaining teams. Day 1 began with the facilitator explaining that we were to define our roles in teams behaviorally, by observable or measurable movement or activity. In other words, we were to state the behaviors that we see exhibited in ourselves andRead… Read more »
At the Esri Federal GIS Conference on February 10, 2015, former Governor Martin O’Malley delivered a motivating keynote speech on the importance of GIS technology for government leaders that want to make a lasting difference for their constituents. O’Malley has been a pioneer for geographic information systems throughout his political career. During his first twoRead… Read more »
Most GovLoopers are looking to move up or move out to the next great gig. There’s lots of great advice on this site about how to do just that. But if you’re not sure if you want to climb the career ladder, here are ten guaranteed ways to sabotage your own success: Stay underground –Read… Read more »
Last week I wrote about the MVP in the workplace. This week, I am prompted to make a stretch from last week’s narrative. Something quite the opposite. Although each of us can identify an MVP or two on our team, look around and you may not only identify the MVP but you may just alsoRead… Read more »
I was a detailee in the Bureau of Consular Affairs in the summer of 2008 when the office managing director walked by my desk and told me to ask my boss to be at TF3 in 30 minutes. “And make sure he takes the Colombia hostages file,” she added. My boss had gone out ofRead… Read more »