Oh, the joy of Labor Day Weekend. Beach? Check. BBQ? Check. Pool-side chillin’ with some bureaucrats? Ummm…I’m guessing that may not be your idea of a good time, but the significance of public engagement for government agencies cannot be overstated. Citizen inclusion, transparency, and participation all help promote a functioning democratic process and society. AndRead… Read more »
Feedback is not easy for most people. Learning to give it constructively and receive it gracefully are two skills that can make difficult situations much less so. Getting in the habit of asking for feedback is also important. You should be soliciting feedback from your direct reports, or letting them know that you are interestedRead… Read more »
When was the last time you used your Elevator Pitch? The Elevator Pitch is your brief and concise marketing statement to promote you talents and business acumen. It clearly identifies your areas of expertise in 60 seconds or less. The best elevator pitch offers the opportunity to engage, inform and persuade a potential new clientRead… Read more »
Government is known for many things—but innovation typically is not one of them. That doesn’t mean it’s not happening, though. In fact, throughout the country there are people in and around government thinking outside the box and bringing innovation to their communities. These new ideas are helping to bridge technology gaps, increase transparency, provide essentialRead… Read more »
The man was looking me in the eyes as I explained the situation to him but his eyes told me he was miles away. He was not present in our conversation even though he was standing right in front of me. Where was he? Was he still in the meeting that just ended? Was heRead… Read more »
UPDATE: Thanks for your interest! This contest is now closed. We’ll announce our featured bloggers soon! At GovLoop, we pride ourselves on our community. There are over 120,000 of you — government employees, industry partners, and knowledge experts — who are extremely engaged. You comment on nearly a thousand posts and discussions each month. YouRead… Read more »
Today’s increasing reliance on new and evolving information technology in employment has given new meaning to the term work-life balance. That’s because the 21st century proliferation of digital/mobile IT tools to do our jobs is radically transforming how and when we work in fundamental ways. The question now is whether the transition to the virtualRead… Read more »
Nextdoor (city link) is a promising alternative web-based communications opportunity for local governments and other agencies with physically localized or contiguous client populations. Where Facebook taught us to talk to people all over the world who we will never meet, Nextdoor is re-training us to talk to our neighbors. Nextdoor operates by neighborhoods, and youRead… Read more »
Have you ever been bullied? Have you supervised a team that included a bully? Though they sometimes go by other names, I have known my share of bullies and have struggled to deal with them at different times in my life. It doesn’t really matter if the bully is part of a little league softRead… Read more »
Its easy to pick holes in most things and I am pretty good at doing it myself. Indeed it is also easy to find fault with Govcamp and the unconference format; and I can certainly see some things we can improve on regarding organising the event. However that does sound a bit odd ‘organising anRead… Read more »