I am in a federal office that places a high value on innovation, yet there are so many bureaucratic obstacles to being innovative. Are there any good models you can recommend where federal programs have been both innovative and produced valuable results? -Federal Supervisor (GS-14), Department of Homeland Security I can share plenty of examplesRead… Read more »
A couple of days ago we featured an interview with Bristol City Council on their B-Open Competition. From the South West we move to the Midlands where we ask one of the pioneers in local government of hack competitions, Warwickshire County Council. Check out our interview with Jim Morton, an Applications Architect there who blogsRead… Read more »
A couple weeks ago, I shared a blog post promoting a free online training hosted by GovLoop and Young Government Leaders (YGL) entitled “Top 3 Secrets to Being an Amazing Manager.” It turns out that “there are no secrets,” according to our presenter Tom Fox, the Vice President for Leadership and Innovation at the PartnershipRead… Read more »
The information is out there. The technology is available. All it requires is a fair bit of inspiration and a little bit of perspiration to develop small scale applications that can really make a difference to people’s lives. A map can tell you which direction to go in, but it cannot tell you what yourRead… Read more »
I got to thinking the other day..which is a scary concept at times..when I was informed that the E-Gov initiatives in government cost the great taxpayers of this nation millions of dollars a year. Wait, roll that one back: Yup, I said the words 1.) Millions and 2.) Years in that sentence. So, let meRead… Read more »
Yesterday I was made aware of a discussion between two brilliant men that was uploaded to YouTube Sunday at the Ars Electronica Festival. The first nine minutes provide a couple of perspectives on innovation, but more that, listen to Joi Ito’s reasons for accepting his new position as Director of the MIT Media Lab.
I’d like to share with you one of the best recent applications that also represents a good approach how to combine theoretical knowledge and practical background in one case. Here it is,Startup Genoma Compass that could become a very popular and efficient way to measure startup success and to define in what stage of developmentRead… Read more »
Do you know why scotch tape is called scotch tape? I’ll tell you soon. First let’s explore its invention and the 3M business culture—where scotch tape was invented. In <The Myths of Innovations>, author Scott Berkun pointed out that Google was not the first company willing to give its employees time to work on theirRead… Read more »
In an article from the Washington Post, A Need to Upgrade Uncle Sam’s Innovation Skills, Joe Davidson highlights a new report finding that federal employees express a desire to innovate, but often the federal workplace does not encourage innovation. “An analysis of survey data by the Partnership for Public Service and the Hay Group foundRead… Read more »
Word on the street is that when life first appeared on the planet, it was single-cell. It took a little bit of time (i.e. millions and millions of years) for life to get its differentiation on. But soon, you could see it (or not, since people weren’t around yet): mitochondria, smooth ER and rough ER,Read… Read more »