You’ll find more than seating at a certain park bench outside a Durham, N.C., library. The solar-powered piece of outdoor furniture, part of the Village Green Project, also measures temperature, wind speed, and air quality. Traditional air monitors used for federal regulatory purposes cost tens of thousands of dollars, require experts to run them, andRead… Read more »
There has been a lot of focus on external innovation but what about creating an organization that is consistently innovative internally. This requires that leadership put in place an innovation strategy. Like many leadership initiatives, innovation requires persistency, advocacy and a culture to support it. Throw in technology and you have what I have dubbedRead… 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 »
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 »
I decided that the new Federal fiscal year would be an opportunity for me to start fresh and get organized. There was no better way to manifest this than to erase my white board and make a new list of all of the amazing things I was about to begin. Sadly, though, none of myRead… Read more »
“No man becomes rich unless he enriches others.” – Andrew Carnegie Did you know that scientific evidence shows that helping others is actually beneficial for your own mental health and well-being? Yes, giving can actually reduce stress as well as improve your mood, self-esteem and happiness. In fact, according to the article, The Science ofRead… Read more »
Managing risk in contracting is about taking the downside into account. Both the agency and the vendor need to have a healthy understanding of what the worst outcomes are for their respective sides and to write the contract to address those outcomes. What happens if the vendor is unable to provide the service? How canRead… Read more »
DO YOU THINK YOU CAN’T GET FIRED? Don’t tell me that it’s never crossed your mind. When you become a tenured government employee, after around five years of service in most agencies, it’s natural to heave a great sigh of relief that you won’t be cashing unemployment checks any time soon. Urban legend says it’s impossibleRead… Read more »
This series began discussing fostering relationships through contracting. This idea underpins all discussions about contracting because if you keep the relationship in mind while conducting contract negotiations, where both sides are heard and concerns are addressed, then there is a greater likelihood that the outcome will be beneficial to both parties. In the previous post,Read… Read more »
Next-gen air sensors can provide a network of affordable, portable devices that relay data in real time. But the science and application of these sensors needs an equivalent human network. We’ve found that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a played a significant role in convening the community. A wide-ranging collaboration resulted in a parkRead… Read more »