It seems to be the general concensus that a Last Will and Testament is an essential part of a good estate plan but Living Trusts are not as widely used nor understood. Although many may think that probate is a negative of the Last Will and Testament, a great many individuals remain comfortable with it.Read… Read more »
Bombing in Gaza. The Russians amassing troops at the Ukrainian border. U.S. Airstrikes in Iraq. The European economy rapidly slowing down. An Ebola outbreak. And U.S. stocks were up last week. It took a 186-points rally in the Dow on Friday to push the indices into positive territory, and that probably took many investors byRead… Read more »
Our friends at Healthy Democracy, an NCDD organizational member, recently made an announcement that I am personally excited about, and that we wanted to let you know about too: the Citizens’ Initiative Review Process is expanding to Colorado! As a Colorado resident myself, I couldn’t be more pleased that this innovative democratic process is comingRead… Read more »
In the late 1990s, General Motors began installing its OnStar technology in its vehicles. The service is powered by GPS and mobile phone data and allows drivers to communicate directly with assistance personnel, receive turn-by-turn navigation and conduct vehicle diagnostics. OnStar is one of the first and most well known instances of the Internet ofRead… Read more »
In the human capital, human resources and talent management worlds, we hear more and more about the importance of these fields, how significant they are and why they matter. At the same time, there is also much written and discussed about elevating HR to a more strategic role and how to make that happen. ThereRead… Read more »
This week’s topic is the “Unintended Consequences of the FAR 8.4 Rewrite.” Simply put, the rewrite removed a strategic acquisition tool, single award Blanket Purchase Agreements (BPAs), from customer agency procurement tool boxes when using the GSA schedule program. Here is more on the background, result and unintended consequences of the rule. In 2011 FederalRead… Read more »
Have you flown recently? You might feel like your options are more limited because of trends in air service and recent airline mergers. But do you really have fewer airlines to choose from? In the last several months, GAO has reported on changes in the airline industry and their implications for consumers and communities. AirRead… Read more »
GovHack 2014 was the largest open data in Australian history. With over 1,300 participants across 10 locations, it set a new benchmark for engagement with, and reuse of, government data. On Sunday evening the winners will be announced at a Red Carpet Awards Night in Brisbane. I’ll be attending and liveblogging & tweeting the event,Read… Read more »
“It’s not a revolution, but an evolution of what we’ve already been seeing in the Internet,” said Cisco Systems U.S. public sector engineering and chief technology officer Daniel Kent about today’s newest wave of technology, the ‘Internet of Things.’ Kent was the first speaker in a rapid-fire discussion of the implications of the Internet ofRead… Read more »
The Urban Institute’s Harry Hatry is one of the pioneers of the late 20th century performance measurement movement. He has just released a new guide on transforming performance measurement that sums his best practical advice in one place. Harry Hatry is legendary. His indefatigable commitment to measuring government performance stretches back to his days asRead… Read more »