Have you been putting off a tough conversation? Stewing about it? Losing sleep over it for days? (I’ve got one coming up that I’ve been dreading!) We tend to put off difficult conversations, whether we’re needing to confront a coworker, ask a boss for a raise, bring up behavioral issues with a subordinate, or discussRead… Read more »
The next point about fostering a vendor relationship is to step back and to evaluate the relationship on a regular basis. Most vendor contracts allow for or even require regular interaction about the day to day activities of the contract. Operational issues come up often and are worked out. This contact and communication is anRead… Read more »
It has been almost five years since the federal government launched the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI). The initiative called for agencies to reduce the government’s 3,100 data centers by 40 percent. This effort was anticipated to save the federal government as much as $5 billion by 2015. However, instead of moving steadily towards achieving theseRead… Read more »
As a teleworker for over twenty-five years, I know the pros and cons of working out of your home. All of the advantages of telecommuting are really dependent on the ability to do it wisely. Confession: When I first started I worked out of my basement. To set the focus, I would walk out theRead… Read more »
LinkedIn Company Pages once held a lot of promise, but their value has becoming increasingly limited over time. Most organizations can now probably either live without them or restrict their usage to a simple organizational profile. This post assesses the past and current state of the feature and offers guidance on the most practical ways toRead… Read more »
Everyone has those times in their life where they’re just not happy. And when this happiness is caused by being in the wrong job, with the wrong people, doing the wrong thing, it can cause you to dump “yuck” onto everyone in your life. It’s easy to say, “My life is bigger than my job!”Read… Read more »
A few months ago I did a brave thing (for me) and finally registered to vote as a Libertarian. It was a tough thing to do. For one thing Libertarians have a sort of crappy brand. For another they’re a little weird. Thirdly they’re not mainstream, and so they influence rather than win elections. ButRead… Read more »
We all understand how important it is to maintain frequent, open, and direct communications among IT project team members. In fact, one of the biggest challenges that managers face is in establishing and keeping these lines open. Challenges often arise because, it seems, many IT professionals tend to be introverted – shy about speaking up,Read… Read more »
Each year, some employees do their best to stay focused by following the office rules and political climate succinctly. While this is a way to play it safe, it often yields the same results: a “check the box mentality” of task management. Yet, have you ever wondered what life is like on the other sideRead… Read more »
As I negotiate inclusion trainings with busy supervisors and managers in the federal government, I am often asked, “Boil inclusion down to a couple of talking points for me.” Know Yourself This is often the most difficult first step. Most of us go through life without fully know ourselves by identifying our personal beliefs, biasesRead… Read more »