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How the Heck Do You Keep on Mission When the Mission is Always Changing?

Ask EIG is your chance to seek answers to public sector management challenges and conundrums. Submit your questions here. How do we maintain a mission focus for our agency when operationally we are constantly pushed and pulled by administration priorities and political directives? The game seems to ... Read & React

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through. Zig Ziglar

The Inspiring Future (and Present) of Government Innovation

by John Kamensky Senior Fellow, IBM Center for the Business of Government

What inspired me at the Excellence in Government Conference? I liked the emphasis on innovations underway in different places around the government. Sometimes we get caught up in buzzwords of the ... Read & React

NIH Finds Sleep Gene Linked to Migraines

by Dr. Francis Collins Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Migraines—pounding headaches sometimes preceded by a visual “aura,” and often coupled with vomiting, nausea, distorted vision, and hypersensitivity to sound and touch—can be highly debilitating if recurrent and prolonged. They affect millions of Americans and an estimated 10–20 percent of the ... Read & React

Open-Plan Offices Are Terrible for Your Health

by Anna Codrea-Rado

A well-designed office is a happy office. As facilities managers strive to save space and cash, they’re reshuffling desks and fiddling with temperature gauges. All of which has an impact on workers’ performance. Open-plan offices may make some kinds of collaboration easier, but are they more ... Read & React

Astronaut Sally Ride Awarded the Medal of Freedom

by J.K. Trotter

On Monday afternoon President Barack Obama awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to former astronaut, physicist, and entrepreneur Sally Ride, who died last July at age 61. In the announcement, Obama is quoted: “Sally showed us that there are no limits to what we can achieve, and I look forward ... Read & React

How Exercising at Work Saves Money

by Celine Gounder

Ever since Karen Straub had her thyroid removed because of cancer in 1999, she has struggled with her weight. She became diabetic and suffered from terrible acid reflux. So when her boss, California State Controller John Chiang, started a worksite wellness program for his staff, Straub decided to ... Read & React

Cass Sunstein's 8 Simple Rules for Making Government 'Simpler'

by Mark Micheli Editor, Excellence in Government

Listen to the story: Download this episode | Subscribe on iTunes Where you see a pyramid, replace it with a plate. So goes the mantra of Cass Sunstein, author of Simpler: The Future of Government and President Obama’s former “Regulatory Czar." The “plate not pyramid” slogan advocated by Sunstein, ... Read & React

Infographic: The 10 Agencies with The Most STEMM Talent

by Mark Micheli Editor, Excellence in Government

The demand for STEMM talent (aka science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medical field professionals) is increasing. According to a new report issued by the Partnership for Public Service and Booz Allen Hamilton, entitled, The Biggest Bang Theory: How to Get the Most out of the ... Read & React

What Songs Keep You Motivated at Work?

by Scott Eblin Executive Coach

Music can have a powerful impact on mindfulness. Certain songs or genres can be totally distracting or annoying while others set you up to remember why you do what you do as a leader. Likewise, there are distracting and annoying things about smartphones and there are also very useful things about ... Read & React

The 5 Best Ways to Attract STEMM Talent to your Agency

by Lara Shane

Recruiting highly sought after STEMM talent, that is professionals in the science, technology, engineering, mathematics or medical fields, is hard and getting harder. The demand is growing, but the number of college students who have selected STEMM majors so far is staying flat. Federal agencies ... Read & React

How to Prevent the IRS From Abusing Its Power Again

by Conor Friedersdorf

Almost everyone agrees that the IRS behaved badly when it singled out conservative activist groups for extra scrutiny. As Ezra Klein put it, "because the Internal Revenue Service holds so much private data, and because it can make people's lives absolutely miserable, it is of paramount importance ... Read & React