You have to understand that a brand is way beyond a logo now. You do understand that, because the Mad Men paradigm where we cook up Frankenstein in the lab and serve it up to you has been destroyed. In its place is an open kitchen where you can see me cooking, and if IRead… 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 »
There’s a million witty words for bureaucratic language…. gobbledygook, gibberish, mumbo-jumbo, jargon, double-talk, bureaucratese, technobabble! There are probably so many words for it because it’s such a widespread, and exasperating, problem. Including in the government. It’s fun to use crazy words, but it’s certainly not a best practice in terms of government efficiency. Annetta Cheek,Read… Read more »
Are your workplace interactions motivating and engaging? Or stiff and stale? Other than email, in which format do most of your professional interactions take place? Presentations? Status reports? Discussions? Brainstorming sessions? Whatever your answer, ask yourself if the primary formats are particularly engaging or effective. If not, consider the contributions of “liberating structures,” an innovation broughtRead… Read more »
Use this checklist of email design best practices to deliver messages that are not only tailored to your audience, but also look professional, function properly, and capture the attention of increasingly-busy and multi-device-connected constituents to invite opens, attract clicks, and inspire action.
There are so many moving pieces that go into project management, that of utmost importance in keeping everything together is having all of the information about dates, deliverables, assignments, costs, etc. in one place. Here, I provide some of my favorite templates for government project schedules to help keep you sane. A variety of stateRead… Read more »
“We have to understand that the world can only be grasped by action, not by contemplation. The hand is more important than the eye…The hand is the cutting edge of the mind.” (Bronowski, 1973) Designing government Like most governments right now, we’re very excited about the potential of design to transform service delivery and policyRead… Read more »
Everyone is talking about Humans of New York. It’s a success story worth the airtime. It’s also an inspiration that can help you find the heart in your storytelling and communications. Recently, Brandon Stanton, who runs the popular photography blog, shared a photo of a 13-year-old boy who attends school in one of the mostRead… Read more »
#GovLove is spreading this week. Send your co-worker the punny valentine of your dreams. direct.govloop.com/gov-vday-cards1 Love and government make strange bedfellows. What if the object of your infatuation happens to work for the government? These Valentine’s Day cards can help you win their love. There’s a lot of variety in these Valentine’s Day cards — you can find one justRead… Read more »
Of all the questions people ask about branding, this is by far the most important because propaganda in my view is never legitimate or useful. And I have been there when brand consultants came up with “messages per stakeholder” meaning we say one thing to one person at one time and another thing to anotherRead… Read more »