Website Upgrades: 5 Essential Considerations

With the remarkable growth in social media, mobile devices and apps over the past five years, traditional websites may seem passé and maybe even a bit quaint and antiquated. But for most organizations they remain their primary digital presence, serve as the home base of their digital networks, and are at the core of theirRead… Read more »

Using DATA to Shine the Light on Federal Spending

Understanding how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars is a daunting task. In fiscal year 2013 alone, the federal government spent $3.5 trillion. In May, Congress unanimously passed and the President signed the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (DATA), which increases accountability and transparency of federal spending. The act requires several changes that will shedRead… Read more »

The Process of Absolutely Everything: Powering the Internet of Things

Let’s go through your typical workday. You wake up early, probably to your alarm clock or coffee maker. Maybe you catch up on news by scanning sites and blogs online or on your smartphone during your commute. If you drive, you might use certain apps like Waze to navigate through traffic. When at work youRead… Read more »

Controlling Your Inbox: How to Use Email More Productively

The second week of June is Email Week. To pay respect to my former “you’ve got mail” addiction, I’m focusing this week’s blog on email. I need to provide this caveat, any similarity to real person or real events is coincidental and for educational purposes only. Let’s begin. Imagine you are the sole survivor, theRead… Read more »

Video on our Duplication and Cost Savings Work

In light of today’s challenging fiscal environment, improving government efficiency and effectiveness is important. Our work has identified hundreds of specific actions that the federal government can take–or in some cases, has already taken–to reduce or better manage fragmentation, overlap, and duplication; reduce costs; or enhance revenue. Watch our new video about this work: ForRead… Read more »

Developing an Age-Friendly City

Having the option to age independently within one’s community is often presented as a healthy alternative to more traditional assisted living options (e.g. the World Health Organization, AARP). In this option, community refers to more than one’s home. It refers to the built environment around us and individual and collective person environment fit. But howRead… Read more »

Is Open Data Sustainable in Your Community?

Which comes first, open data or open government? This question was posed at the Sunlight Foundation’s recent TransparencyCamp. The two-day event featured various outbreak sessions and thought-provoking messages from industry professionals. You can view additional coverage of the event here, “ICYMI: TransparencyCamp Event” and here, “Improving Data.gov: Insights from Sunlight Foundation’s Transparency Camp“. One ofRead… Read more »