How to Grow Mushrooms in the Office

Before you think this article is one you perhaps shouldn’t be reading as a government professional, let me define office mushrooms for you. I’m not talking about the fungus, but rather the saying about how some companies treat their employees – keeping them in the dark and feeding them garbage. It’s a good way toRead… Read more »

100 Power Words for Your Resume

RedStarResume produced a list of Power Words they claim “will increase your chances of getting hired by 80%!” While I can’t attest to this claim, their list is full of action verbs that help writers paint an excellent verbal picture of their work experience; this makes it a LOT easier for those who read resumesRead… Read more »

What I’ve been reading

I find this stuff so that you don’t have to. Are open standards a closed barrier? | Government Digital Service – “Fresh out of a roundtable discussion on the Open Standards: Open Opportunities consultation, Linda Humphries discusses whether open can really mean closed.” eParticipation needs to be carefully integrated into the complex world of existingRead… Read more »

What Happens When Leaders Ask ‘Why Do We Do This?’

Young children are legendary for asking Why? Why? Why? when seeking to learn. Adults, however, tend to simply do what’s been done before without asking – why do we do this? An experience to consider. When appointed as head of operations years ago, I suspended a dozen reports compiled by the accounting department without announcingRead… Read more »

Should Government Reorganize Itself? (Part VI)

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 AdministrationRead… Read more »

Access Anywhere – IRS Goes Mobile with Help from GovDelivery

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) unveiled an updated version of their smartphone application, IRS2Go, in early February. The app was “designed to provide taxpayers easier access to practical tools and information,” and the update included an application programming interface (API) integration with GovDelivery Digital Communication Management (DCM), which allowed app users to sign up toRead… Read more »

What Does it Take to be a Leader in the Digital Era?

How should we define the keys to successful leadership now that we are fully immersed in the Digital Era? This post shares diverse perspectives on the core characteristics and offers preliminary thoughts on integrating ideas and identifying themes. Readers are invited to contribute additional ideas, insights, and analysis. Background As the Founder of both theRead… Read more »

GovBytes: Government takes on Pinterest

As Pinterest gains in popularity on the Internet, government is taking notice; Pinterest is already the 3rd most popular social networking website, behind only Facebook and Twitter. It specializes in allowing users to create their own pin boards and share photographs they find interesting with their followers. The Military has taken advantage of Pinterest, andRead… Read more »