Leadership & Management

Harvard University has announced its Top 25 programs in this year’s Innovations in American Government Award competition. These government initiatives represent the dedicated efforts of city, state, federal, and tribal governments and address a host of policy issues including crime prevention, economic development, environmental and community revitalization, employment, education, and health care.[read more]

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Political action committees and concerned citizens of all stripes have come out against two bills in the Tennessee state legislature that would effectively increase taxes paid by utility companies and broadband providers for use of the poles in that state. Both anti-tax groups and broadband access groups are concerned that the bill could limit investment in broadband throughout the state.[read more]

Whether emergency service personnel and management ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ Facebook, Twitter or other social media and online channels is now irrelevant. Citizens, media organisations and other groups increasingly rely on them to share information, tactics and to organise outside of any central control by an agency and regardless of their wishes.[read more]

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At the Gov 2.0 lunchtime event last week (video coming soon), Darren, Manager, Media and Community Information, from the ACT's Emergency Services Agency talked about how closely he'd worked with Richard, his technical lead, to create their social media presence and new website. He proudly told us the website had cost only $43 to build,...[read more]

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1. Taxpayers would be "guests," and we would fall all over ourselves to win their repeat business. 2. Customer service would be in the first paragraph of everyone's job description.[read more]

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Yesterday the Sydney Morning Herald reported that the Liberal Party had 'slapped a social media gag on MPs.' I think social media has become an important 'toolkit' of channels for politicians to use to engage constituents, stakeholders and the media. If the party can't trust its own electoral candidates to behave appropriately in public discourse, why should the public trust these candidates in public office?[read more]

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I'm a big fan of that show "The Millionaire Matchmaker" which used to run on Bravo. If you haven't seen it, every week Patty the Jewish matchmaker helped a socially challenged millionaire find "true love." The show was alternately agonizing and hilarious as we watched people who seemed functional in their professional life (...[read more]

Studies have shown (see note 1) people who are first depleted by a tedious task wrote more favorably than those who did not complete a tedious task. The depleted people performed just as well, just more favorably.[read more]

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Whether it’s simply to share pictures and innocuous thoughts with friends, or as serious as a cry for help, people in the 21st century use social media to communicate their thoughts.[read more]

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I had an interesting discussion last week with a colleague about the terminology of government. We talk about politicians as moving the 'levers of power' and departmental restructures as 'machinery of government' (MOG) changes (sometimes used as a verb "we got mogged!") Lack of progress in bureaucracy is called 'spinning wheels' (...[read more]

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Cities continue to face the prolonged effects of the economic downturn according to a new report by the National League of Cities (NLC). The 27th annual City Fiscal Conditions report shows that for the sixth straight year city revenues continue to fall as financial pressures such as infrastructure, health care and pension costs combine...[read more]

In my last post, I talked about the 10 things you should be saying to your boss. Now it's time to look at the other side and share 10 things that your boss should be saying to you.[read more]

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The thing is, if you never tell people how long they are going to have to wait - expect them to get unhappy. More importantly, if, while their waiting, other contributors come and make negative comments about their contributions, don't be surprised if they get even more unhappy and become less and less inclined to submit patches (or brownies, or whatever makes your community go round).[read more]

Here are ten of those things that I've said repeatedly over the last few years that I think any employee should be regularly saying to their boss.[read more]

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Being wrong about the macro economic fundamentals need not stop anyone from becoming Governor of the Bank of England. Given how hopeless the "experts'" orthodoxy, I'd say it was probably a prerequisite.[read more]