Government Executive - Authors - Dana Grinshpan

Retaining and Developing Tomorrow's Federal Talent

Dana Grinshpan — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 17:51:57 -0500

Retention and workforce development are two important components to keeping any organization staffed with the right talent. Amid ongoing budget deficits, many federal agencies have been struggling in these efforts, resulting in skills gaps in many occupational areas. Skills gaps, as defined by the Government Business Council (GBC), occur when there are not enough skilled workers to fill specific occupational needs. Download this report to learn:

What talent management practices federal leaders are using to make up for growing skills gaps
Most common strategies for addressing the alignment of skills with positions
How senior executives and program managers offer different insights into retention and recruitment in the federal government

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7 Myths Challenging Shared Service Adoption

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 09:52:46 -0400

Though some federal agencies have made progress in shared service adoption and at least nine federal shared service providers (FSSPs) have emerged across various lines of business, widespread concerns over the implications of shared services are slowing further implementation of the 2012 Federal IT Shared Services Strategy.

With these concerns in mind, Accenture Federal Services and Government Business Council undertook an in-depth study to better understand the reluctance among federal managers to adopt shared services and empower them to better focus on mission.

Download this GBC research report to learn:

What is holding managers back from shared service adoption
Which “Shared-First” strategy goal is most important to federal managers
How agencies are currently sharing services, and what functions will be next

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Video Conferencing Mandates: What Your Agency Needs to Know

Clement Christensen and Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 23 Sep 2013 16:42:00 -0400

In the past three years, federal leaders from agency chiefs to President Obama have mandated the use of video conferencing, citing the need to reduce travel spending, increase collaboration, and improve productivity in the federal government. As Congress and agencies look for ways to improve operations during the sequester, they may be able to look to enhance the use of video conferencing in order to reduce their spending on travel.

Download this report to learn what your agency needs to know about the video conferencing mandates, the problems your agency may encounter, and the benefits you can expect from visual collaboration technologies.

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Keeping Pace: A Norwegian Case Study for Digital Government

Clement Christensen and Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 15:33:16 -0400

It seems more and more often that news outlets are publishing stories of the successes of Nordic governments. Wealthy economies, 30 days of vacation by law, and government-prepared tax forms that can be reviewed, filed, and paid from a smartphone in seconds. Despite the majority of praise being attributed to Nordic governments, the truth is that US federal agencies are largely keeping pace in modernizing services despite considerable challenges. Agencies are now creating the kinds of modern, efficient services for which Nordic governments have been receiving so much praise.

Download this report to learn about the programs that are pushing the envelope for digital government in the United States, including:

-Business USA

-Department of Labor's Customer Service Modernization Program

-Veteran's Relationship Management

-MyUSA

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Federal Survey Results: 6 Key Challenges to Adopting Shared Services & How to Overcome Them

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Agencies are now required to identify and move particular services to shared models. But many agencies are having difficulty making the transition.

In this special research report, Government Business Council (GBC) digs deep into responses from over 300 agency managers to identify the biggest challenges in adopting shared service models and how some agencies are overcoming them.

Download this GBC insight report to learn:

How shared services can achieve cost savings and cost avoidance
The 6 biggest challenges to adopting shared services
How the “Shared-First” and “Cloud-First” strategies can work together
How to implement a shared services strategy in your agency

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Protecting the Past & Leaving Room for the Future: Challenges Facing Federal Records Management

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 29 Aug 2013 10:00:00 -0400

The Presidential Directive on Records Management outlines a clear future path for the proper storage, destruction and maintenance of paper and electronic agency records. The type of accurate and complete recordkeeping detailed by the Directive is also essential to compliance with other initiatives, including sequestration, the “Freeze the Footprint” Real Estate Mandate, the Executive Order on Open Data, continued progress on the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) and a new focus on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Despite the high priority many federal leaders place on records management, agencies are in various stages of implementation.

Download this GBC Insight Report to learn:

How most agencies store their records
What managers identify as the top challenges to records management
How training can improve records management in your agency

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Data Analytics: The Prescription for High Health Care Costs

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 09:00:00 -0400

Ask anyone today and you’ll hear that health care costs are astronomically high. National health care expenditures nearly doubled from 2000 to 2011, from $1,377.2 billion to $2,700.7 billion, and they continue to climb. Numerous factors are likely responsible for the growth, including rising hospital, provider and medical technology prices; an expansion of Americans affected by chronic diseases like obesity and diabetes; and the climbing costs associated with an aging population.

Escalating health care costs have both direct and indirect effects on federal finances. Though agencies may not be able to affect the price of care themselves, steps can be taken to ensure that dishonest activity does not add to already inflated costs. With the uncertainty associated with the Affordable Care Act, curbing unnecessary spending is a top priority.

Download this Government Business Council issue brief to learn:

What rising health care costs mean for government finances
How Medicare and Medicaid fraud pushes health care costs even higher
What federal agencies can do to curb fraudulent activity

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The Need for Self-Service Data Tools, Not Scientists

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Data science is one of today’s hottest fields and one that is rife with competition. Projections indicate that employer demand requires that the United States increase the number of graduates with skills handling large amounts of data by as much as 60 percent. The federal government is one of the organizations most in need of data scientists, but hiring freezes, slashed training budgets and a lack of qualified candidates have all hampered the ability to recruit these types of professionals. Faced with such obstacles, agencies have been developing creative solutions to fill the hiring gap.

Download this Government Business Council issue brief to learn:

Why government needs more analytic capacity
Which new data mandates are putting pressure on federal agencies
Why government has difficulty hiring data scientists
How self-service data tools can bridge the hiring gap

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The Cloud Roadmap for Agencies: How to move fast (and safe) to capture huge savings

Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 00:00:00 -0400

With better guidelines around cloud computing acquisition and security now in place, many agencies are starting to branch out to more sophisticated cloud computing systems and reaping huge benefits in cost savings.

Download this GBC research brief to learn how some agencies are taking advantage of the new guidelines and operating frameworks, such as Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), to advance their cloud programs and drive savings.

In this brief, you will learn:

How to pay less and only for the IT services you need
Best practices from other agencies for using a hybrid cloud model
How to comply with security mandates while migrating to the cloud

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In the Eye of the Storm: Public Sector Leadership in the Logistics of Disaster Relief

Clement Christensen and Dana Grinshpan — Wed, 10 Jul 2013 14:06:00 -0400

By 2014, an average of 375 million people per year will be affected by climate-related disasters, more than 50 percent greater than last decade’s average. To provide aid to those in need, a vast network of NGOs has arisen to raise funds and provide materials. However, these organizations are quickly falling behind, hampered by ineffecient logistics and out-dated practices. Disasters are increasingly destructive and expensive, and it will take the leadership of the public sector to improve both public and private disaster relief operations.

Download this report to learn:

-The challenges disaster relief efforts will face in the next ten years

-How NGOs and charities are hampered by the public's expectation

-How federal, state, and local agencies can work to improve relief efforts

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Reinforcing Data, Not Bunkers: A New Era of Data-Centric COOP Planning

Clement Christensen and Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 15:09:49 -0400

In 2007, President Bush enacted National Security Presidential Directive-51, which stipulated all executive agencies and departments must prepare and implement continuity of operations (COOP) plans. As the government has moved its operations online and into the digital era, the need to ensure continuous access to information technology (IT) systems and vital electronic data during emergencies has grown ever more important.

Download this report to learn:

How prepared agencies and federal leaders are for a variety of COOP scenarios
How COOP planners are preparing to protect and maintain data continuity
The most popular and highly rated COOP strategies to protect sensitive information

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Inside the DCGS-A: Advancing Real-Time Intelligence

Clement Christensen and Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 11:55:56 -0400

From September 11th to the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States military, homeland security and police have learned the value of information sharing. To improve situational awareness, the Department of Defense (DoD) and its component military services have developed information sharing systems (dubbed Distributed Common Ground Systems, DCGS) designed to fuse intelligence and data from a vast variety of sources, including signals, imagery and human intelligence. However, to effectively deploy this vital intelligence system, the Army and its military counterparts will have to overcome the challenges of reducing its size, weight, and power.

Download this report to learn how the Army is using cloud technologies to reduce the size, weight, and power and make the DCGS program a key part of Army operations.

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The Modern Reality of COOP Planning: Reinforcing Data, not Bunkers

Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 12:26:00 -0400

Continuity of operations (COOP) planning often conjures images of Cold War-era bunkers and preparing for attacks. But these associations stand in stark contrast to the modern reality, where dedicated federal employees leverage information technology (IT) solutions to protect sensitive information. With new technologies, policies, and threats, COOP planners are adjusting to an increasingly data-centric world with data-centric planning.

Download this brief to learn how COOP planners can prepare the federal government for emergencies from power outages to cyber attacks, and the four benefits of backing up government IT services in the cloud.

Click Here to also download an infographic highlighting the key results of the survey!

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3 Signs You Need to Upgrade Your Agency's IAM System

Zoe Grotophorst and Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 28 May 2013 14:54:00 -0400

Though much progress has been made since the national cybersecurity strategy was unveiled in May 2009, identity and access management (IAM) is still evolving in public sector. Though 83 percent of the 24 major federal agencies have IAM systems in place, a March 2013 FISMA report revealed numerous gaps in agency implementation.

Failing to address these gaps has serious implications for cybersecurity. In this issue brief, learn three indicators that point to needing an upgrade and what you can do about it.

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Rising to the Top

Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

When it comes to women’s achievements, few compare to their rise in government. In President Obama’s first term Cabinet, five women were selected to provide the president key insight into running government. Although the path to gender parity in government leadership positions is slow, women continue to make strides.

In January, however, there was an exodus of high-profile female members of Obama’s Cabinet, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and Deputy Chief of Staff Nancy-Ann DeParle. The president recently tapped clean air regulator Gina McCarthy to lead EPA and REI chief executive Sally Jewell to be Interior secretary. And White House press secretary Jay Carney has asked citizens to reserve judgment until more appointments are made.

With judgment reserved, one can’t help but wonder about women’s role in federal leadership. Often, high-
performing officials are plucked from agencies to fill second term appointments. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women make up 44 percent of the federal workforce, almost an equal playing field with men in competition for these positions. Yet the gap persists.

Education is not the reason. On average, working women tend to be more educated than men. In 1970, 22 percent of women in the labor force had either attended some college or graduated with a degree. By 2010, 67 percent of women had at least some college education.

The much-maligned old boys’ network might be part of the problem—and the solution. The network establishes relationships on the golf course and other places outside the office. It fosters relationship-building for the sake of business and joins mentors with willing professional novices.

Therein lies the opportunity. In government and the corporate world alike, people who rise to top leadership positions don’t get there with only a laundry list of accomplishments. They ride there by taking initiative and leveraging the help of their networks. Building a network, however, is more than just exchanging business cards. Here are five things successful women do to rise to the top:

- Just ask. A killer performance on that last small project is a great start in getting your name out there. But being known for organizing the filing cabinet or taking charge of the timelines won’t get you the exposure you need. One commonly cited impediment to female leadership growth is lack of exposure on high-profile projects. If there is a big project that you want to be part of, make a case for your contribution. It is likely you will be welcomed with open arms.

- Find a mentor. Unlike private companies, agencies often don’t have official mentoring programs. When trying to identify a mentor, think of those who have given you good advice and who work outside your department. The next time they give you a tip, ask whether you can call on them for their insight. This begins a less formal process for building relationships and growing in your role.

- Be your own advocate. Nobody knows your contribution more than you do. People are busy, and not all of your successes are known departmentwide. Forget any hesitation about sounding selfish if you tout one of your achievements. Step up to the plate and make sure your role in the last successful project is known.

- Network with other women. In the workplace, female leaders beget more female leaders. As more women break down the lingering cultural and institutional barriers to leadership, it paves the way for mentorships and opportunities for others. Events and conferences also provide enormous opportunities for women to make professional connections.

- Be supportive. One common stereotype is that women compete more fiercely with women for top positions. Not only is this anecdotal at best, but harmful if propagated. At a recent event hosted by Government Executive, I presented research I conducted for the Government Business Council and was overwhelmed with constructive feedback—especially from women. Support all your colleagues when you can; professional karma isn’t the stuff of myths.

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Government Employees Get No Respect?

Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 11:31:00 -0400

In the midst of the largest study Government Executive has ever conducted, on the subject of federal employee engagement, some interesting findings have been emerging. More than 21,000 federal employees have responded so far. Here's what they've told us:

About half say they receive the recognition they deserve for a job well done.
Almost three-fourths say that their colleagues respect their opinions.
Less than one-third say they hang out with their colleagues outside of work.

These results are not final yet. We still need to meet certain goals to generalize the results to all federal employees. If you’re one of the people who have already participated in the survey, thank you. If you’re not, we’d greatly appreciate your help. It only takes five minutes.

Click here to complete the employee engagement survey

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3 Ways Agency Leadership Can Keep Employees Engaged

Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 07:00:00 -0400

Describing engagement is no easy feat. The easiest way to explain employee engagement is by describing what it is not. Employee engagement is not job satisfaction, nor does it necessarily mean an employee is happy. Engagement is the emotional connection an employee has with his/her organization or, more specifically, mission. Measuring engagement is akin to measuring the feelings, pride and commitment that employees have with their organization and it is what separates top performers from those who do just enough to rest on their laurels.

(Feeling Engaged? Share your voice in GovExec's largest employee engagement study)

According to a CEB engagement study, a 10 percent increase in commitment decreases an employee’s probably of quitting by 9 percent. In short, employees who are more engaged are less likely to quit, more likely to work long hours without being asked and a lot more likely to have better performance. In that same study, CEB showed that companies with above average employee commitment, tend to have high company performance overall. Here are three ways to foster engagement at your agency.

Focus on under performers. Unfortunately, no matter how much training or feedback you provide some managers, their communication skills may need further development. Hold your managers accountable for engagement in your department. They are the first-line of communication from top leadership. If you find that the manager below you is in need of help, create a personalized developmental plan. The focused attention will not only engage your managers but also send a strong message that you care about the employees your manager supervises.
When in doubt, include. Although we may be reluctant to include too many individuals in a given meeting for fear of meeting-mania, don’t overlook those who will play an integral role in the project but may not be a leader yet. Inclusion does two important things, it adds important resources and engages all levels of your department.
Keep engagement front and center. Make sure that your department knows engagement is your priority. Bring the topic up in meetings, send out emails with advice or post it on newsletters. As a leader, if others know engagement is your priority, they will make it a priority too.

The Government Business Council (GBC), the research division of the Government Executive, has launched its own engagement study of federal employees. In doing so, we track the trends of how efficiency is impacted by engagement and what tools federal leaders can leverage to create better managed agencies.

The study needs stratified representation from all federal agencies in order to provide actionable results. Over 18,000 federal employees have taken the survey so far. And we still need help.

Click here to be a part of GovExec's largest federal employee engagement study.

Image via Mi.Ti./Shutterstock.com

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Amidst Drawdowns in Iraq and Afghanistan, Army Responds With EAGLE

Dana Grinshpan — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 16:13:00 -0500

The Enhanced Army Global Logistics Enterprise program is the latest defense vehicle designed to procure a suite of logistics tools and services for today’s warfighter. EAGLE (not to be confused with the Homeland Security Department’s EAGLE procurement contract) leverages a unique contracting framework to help customers procure virtually any logistic services.

But EAGLE isn’t a contract. “It’s actually a program,” says Scott Welker, deputy to the commander at Army Sustainment Command (ASC). EAGLE, he says, “uses basic ordering agreement for task order competitions. It covers all supplies, maintenance and transportation services requirements. If there is an [Army] installation that covers any of those areas, the ASC EAGLE will cover it.” A key feature of this program is its flexibility. With no minimums and maximums, EAGLE has a potential value of more than $23 billion over five years. In response to the drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan, Army has developed a singular contracting vehicle that can procure virtually any logistic service under the sun.

EAGLE’s streamlined process comes in the context of a push for more flexibility and lower cost in the acquisition process. In September 2010, Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter sent a memo to acquisition professionals outlining the Better Buying Power initiative, designed to make the procurement process more efficient, more competitive, and less costly. He urged the creation of new and more flexible contracting vehicles to not only streamline acquisitions but increase competition. EAGLE is targeted at achieving the latter goal.

Under the Better Buying Power initiative, contracting offices must conduct affordability analyses and cost estimates to ensure that warfighting capabilities are maintained amid shrinking budgets. EAGLE’s analysis indicated it held out the potential for significant cost avoidance. Although it’s difficult to quantify savings yet, given the nascent stage of the program, some installations are already seeing a payoff. The Rock Island Arsenal, for example, recently joined EAGLE and projects close to $2 million in overall savings over the next five years from such actions as revising its performance work statement and expanded competition.

And this should be of no surprise. In times of shrinking budgets and an uncertain Congress, federal and defense managers are compelled to make do—thus putting the onus on innovating. In this case, the ASC has a found an innovative way to cut costs and in doing so, change the way the Army does business.

To read more about this procurement contract, click here.

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Federal and Defense Leaders Align Closely on Priorities, Survey Says

Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 15:14:00 -0500

The Government Business Council (GBC) recently surveyed Government Executive’s readers to find out the biggest trends in the federal and defense communities in the coming year. Our survey instrument yielded over 2,300 responses from federal and defense leaders, ranging from GS-11 to the Senior Executive Service. This survey is providing Government Executive a starting platform for identifying what YOU want to learn from our events, news articles, and much more.

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As the GBC’s research manager, I am responsible for analysis of our primary research data. Almost immediately after we got this data back, I had requests to disaggregate the data between defense and federal civilian leaders. That thought was, perhaps mistakenly, that these two groups have entirely different points of view.

That is not story, or at least the whole story. When asked, ”which of the following would you consider the most pressing management issues facing the federal workforce in 2013”, about two-thirds of both federal (67 percent) and defense (62 percent) leaders chose “achieve operational efficiency.” In fact, these groups showed very little variation for top choices across all the questions we asked.

Differences didn’t even appear between the two groups when we drilled down to second and third choices. Second to achieving operational efficiency, 38 percent of defense leaders and 30 percent federal leaders chose saving money on procurement and contracts as the most pressing issue in 2013.

This is unsurprising given how esoteric and confusing acquisitions and procurement can be. Under the Better Buying Power initiative (released in 2010), defense contracting offices must conduct affordability analyses and cost estimates to ensure that warfighting capabilities are maintained amid shrinking budgets. Since then, Better Buying Power 2.0 has been released to strengthen and expand these initiatives.

Around 2009, OMB similarly developed acquisition and contracting improvement plans and pilot programs. These initiatives were started almost 4 years ago. And yet, agencies still maintain high concern about acquisition.

The proliferation of multiple award contracts (MACs) might have something to do with it. Multiple award contracts, or indefinite-delivery & indefinite-quantity contracts have both streamlined the acquisition process while making it more confusing (wrap your head around that one). Agencies can procure tools and services under one contracting vehicle, but the FAR has varying guidance on the protocols if the contract is administered via the Clinger-Cohen Act versus the Economy Act. Not only that, Basic Ordering Agreements (BOAs) essentially operate as MACs but have a completely different procurement paradigm. In fact, BOAs aren’t contracts at all--they are framework for procurement; the individual task orders administered under BOAs act as the contract.

When it comes to acquisitions and procurement, it is no wonder that saving money on contracts rank high on the government’s to-do list. But how can federal and defense managers learn new tools and practices that check off some of those line items?

Government Executive’s Excellence in Government conference will be providing an opportunity for federal and defense leaders to network and learn best practices around a wide array of topics, including demystifying the procurement process. On May 13-14 , leaders from the civilian and defense communities will join for a 2-day event to take place at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. Get the latest information on the upcoming conference and save the date now .

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The 5 Things Successful Women in Government Do

Dana Grinshpan — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 17:00:00 -0500

When it comes to women’s achievements, few compare to the rising roles of women in government. In Obama’s first term cabinet, five women were tasked with providing the president key insight into running government. Although the path to gender parity in government leadership positions is slow, women continue to make strides in in achieving top positions. However, January saw an exodus of high-profile female members of the president’s cabinet, including Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and Deputy Chief of Staff Nancy-Ann DeParle. So far, no cabinet appointments have made up for the gap in exiting female leadership. White House press secretary Jay carney has asked the public to reserve judgment until more appointments are made.

With judgment reserved, one can’t help but wonder about women’s role in federal leadership. Often, high performing federal officials are plucked from agencies to fill second term appointments. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), women make up about 44 percent of the federal workforce. Therefore, women are almost on equal playing field with men to compete for these positions. And yet a gap persists.

Education is not the reason. On average, working women tend to be more educated than men. In 1970, 22 percent of women in the labor force had either attended some college or graduated with a degree. By 2010, about 67 percent of women now have at least some college education.

The much-maligned “Old Boys’ Club” may account for the problem and the solution. The “Old Boy’s Club” establishes relationships on the golf course and not in the office. It fosters relationship-building for the sake of business and much of the time, joins mentors with willing professional novices.

Therein lies the opportunity. In government and the corporate world alike, those who rise to top leadership positions don’t just get there via a laundry list of accomplishments. They ride there by taking initiative as well as with the help of their network. Building a network, however, is more than just exchanging business cards. Here are five things that all successful women do to rise to the top:

Just Ask. Providing killer performance on that last small project is a great start to getting your name out there. However, being known for organizing the filing cabinet or taking charge of the timelines won’t get you the exposure you need. One commonly cited impediment to female leadership growth is lack of exposure on high-profile projects. If there is a big project that you want to be a part of, make a case for your contribution. It is likely you will be welcomed with open arms.
Find a mentor. Unlike the private sector, agencies often don’t always have official programs that pair mentors with mentees. When trying to identify a mentor, think of those who have given you good advice, and who work outside of your department. The next time they give you a good tip, ask if you can call on them for their insight. In doing so, this begins a less formal process for building relationships and growing in your role.
Be Your Own Advocate. Be courageous. Nobody knows your contribution more than you do. People are busy and not all of your successes are known department-wide. Forget any inclination that you will sound selfish if you tout one of your successes. Step up to the plate and make sure your role in the last successful project is known.
Network With Other Women. In the workplace, female leaders beget more female leaders. As more and more women assuage the lingering cultural and institutional barriers to leadership, it paves the way for more mentorships and opportunities for other women. Not only that, but large events and conferences provide enormous opportunity for women to make professional connections.
Be Supportive. One common stereotype is that women compete more fiercely with other women for top positions. Not only is this anecdotal at best, but harmful if propagated. At a recent event hosted by Government Executive, I presented research conducted by the Government Business Council (GBC). Afterwards, I was overwhelmed with constructive feedback—especially from other women. Support all your colleagues when you can, professional karma isn’t the stuff of myths.

Excellence in Government will be providing another opportunity for women to network and learn best management practices. On May 13-14, men and women across government will join for a 2-day conference to take place at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. The event’s mission is to provide current and rising federal leaders with the latest skills and best practices. Find out more about it and sign up for updates on the conference at ExcellenceinGov.com. The conference is free to attendees.

Have any thoughts on what we should cover at Excellence in Government? We welcome your ideas, case studies, questions and feedback at contactus@excellenceingov.com.

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On Schoolhouse Rock’s 40th Anniversary, A Canadian Reflects

Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 16:30:00 -0500

I was born in Toronto, Canada and raised in an Israeli household where Hebrew was spoken and international events were discussed almost exclusively. When I moved to Ohio in the early 90s, I was definitely a fish out of water (or perhaps syrup out of its jar?). Despite my voracious efforts to learn everything I could about America, I was always behind in class on American history, politics and, in general, how things worked in the States.

Then everything changed.

One day, my teacher stuck a VHS into an old VCR at the front of the class. When she pushed play Schoolhouse Rock’s “I’m Just a Bill” blared to life. I watched in a trance-like state. “This,” I thought, “is something that is completely and uniquely American.”

Armed with what I felt was immensely important knowledge, I went around to my classmates eagerly singing the song to show off that I knew exactly how a law was made in the United States (well, sort of, they never did get around to that filibuster song…). As you can imagine, my first grade classmates didn’t exactly share my same enthusiasm for legislating (or my singing)—but my journey toward truly understanding the basic tenants of American citizenship began, right there, in that classroom. All thanks to Schoolhouse Rock.

Jazz pianist and vocalist Bob Dorough brought the series to life after being approached in 1971 by a New York advertising executive whose sons could not do basic multiplication. The executive asked Dorough to put the multiplication tables to music. The result was “ 3 is a Magic Number ”, which debuted in 1973 on Schoolhouse Rock’s first episode.

Now, 40 years later, Schoolhouse Rock endures. For this once out of place Canadian and countless others:

“Dorough, who is 89 and still performs, said he gets requests from adults to sing some of the bits because they grew up on them -- often times recognizing his voice,” reported CNN in a recent retrospective about the show. "Schoolhouse Rock premiered on Jan. 13, 1973, and ran on ABC from 1973-1985. It came back in the 1990s for five more years. More than 30 million people have now watched some of them on YouTube, showing that Dorough's work still resonates.”

It certainly does. In honor of Schoolhouse Rock’s 40 ^th birthday, I give you what, for many, is the beginning of their journey to understanding how our system of government works:

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Are Government Workers Learning Anything?

Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 16:16:00 -0500

The impending perfect storm of federal retirements, hiring freezes, and sequestration is giving government executives a lot to manage. No other position in the federal government is poised so perfectly to take on these challenges as the chief learning officers (CLO) within each agency.

“We are at an inflection point right now within the federal government,” Tom Fox, the Vice President of Learning and Innovation at the Partnership for Public Service told the Government Business Council (GBC). “The government needs to fundamentally change because we don’t have the resources we had in the past. The chief learning officers are right in the middle of that inflection point. They can help empower their employees for the changes [ahead].”

Before the CLO position was created, agencies would go out and purchase the training and learning vehicles they needed for their staff without any single strategic vision. The lack of coordination often led to program duplication, which sucked needed funding out of shrinking budgets. Not only that, but lack of clear goals left agencies without a single vision of future workforce and learning needs.

Any solution to the challenges ahead will need to start with CLOs preparing the federal workforce with the tools they need to adapt. The Government Business Council, the research arm of the Government Executive, was compelled to contribute to the conversation around this unique challenge and completed an extensive study on the character of chief learning officers in the federal government. According to the study of over 400 federal managers, 32 percent of them indicated that their agency does not even have a CLO. Of the agencies that do have a CLO, only 30 percent reported that their CLO encourages a culture of learning.

Creating a strategic vision for learning is one of the essential responsibilities of the CLO and being associated with that vision is tantamount to that cause. Ensuring that federal employees associate the learning culture with an overall strategic vision will not only propel more staff members to get involved in learning, but will ensure that employees associate learning and training as an essential part of achieving his or her mission. A new breed of CLOs are doing just that.

Thom Terwilliger, CLO for FDIC Corporate University, is rounding out a 5 year action plan to enhance the FDIC’s leadership and development courses. “We have 18 months left [in our plan]…and we now have 5 core courses for leadership development and they start with new employees and go up to the executive level,” said Terwilliger. “Additionally, we have rolled out on average 30 to 35 electives to expand opportunities for learning.” Indeed, the new breed of CLOs are making learning and training a strategic goal across departments and agencies and are working to ensure that the vision is widely shared.

Learn more about chief learning officers in the federal government by reading GBC’s report. Also, come join the conversation on how to create a culture of learning at your agency by joining the Government Business Council at an event on Thursday, Dec. 13.

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Second Terms are for Second Chances

Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 08:37:00 -0500

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Presidential second terms are for second chances. They provide the least awkward chance for presidents to redirect their mission, update their goals, and rearrange key advisors and positions. Second terms also solidify agendas and the way forward, giving Congress assurances about where the next four years are going—thereby making compromise more tenable.

Of course, new political issues and catfights will emerge. Martha Kumar, professor in the department of political science at Towson University and director of the White House Transition Project told the Government Business Council (GBC), “Presidents end up with issues that are often the leftovers that didn’t get enacted in the first term. A couple of issues that come up in most administrations are immigration and social security. They come up because they are so hard to get through”. Importantly, she notes, second term presidents are more experienced and wise to the ways of Washington .

In a recent study seasoned political appointees were surveyed about their relationships with career executives. Eighty-nine percent of appointees reported that working with career executives is either important or very important. When asked to list three things they would recommend to their successor, the appointees recommended listening, trust, and communication as the key things that are important for any transition process. Appointees undoubtedly have an appreciation for the necessity of working with career federal employees; however times of change can make the process more complicated. The Government Business Council (GBC) has combed through its archives of case studies, reports, focus groups, and surveys to identify important tips that will help federal managers through any presidential transition. In concert with expert interviews and secondary research, the following areas were identified:

Show Your Worth: Many federal managers have concerns about taking credit for their accomplishments for fear of appearing pugnacious. However, how will your new leader know your previous contributions if you don’t make them known? Don’t be afraid to take credit for the successful projects you played a key role in. In doing so, make sure to give credit where credit is due. Your colleagues likely helped you on your path to success. Demonstrate that you are a team player by advocating on behalf of your peer’s contributions too.
Write your resume: Martha Kumar, director of the White House Transition Project, also offered some advice to federal managers. “Amid any transition, federal managers should write their resume and send it to their new leaders,” says Kumar. In doing so, new leadership will get a sense for your previous experience and recent accomplishments. It will also be a good way to get some (virtual) face time with your new manager.
Work with your leaders, not against them: You will not succeed in spite of your leader. No matter if you are working in an agency or a company, being successful virtually never happens in spite of your manager—it usually happens with the help of him or her. John Acton, Director of DHS’s Leadership Development program, told GBC, “it is very important that any [career] executive has the perspective to help the new administration. Their job is not to change minds necessarily, but to find the best way to move ahead with new agendas.” Helping your leader succeeding is akin to helping you succeed. During a transition or not, work with your leader to achieve your mission.

This is just a preview of an upcoming report from the Government Business Council on How to Manage through a Presidential Transition. Look for a preview in the print edition of the December issue of Government Executive and the full report online in the beginning of December.

What advice do you have for getting through a transition?

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3 Bad Research Techniques That Will Ruin Your Work

Dana Grinshpan — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 11:00:00 -0500

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Last week, quantitative minded people everywhere cheered as analysis trumped gut. Nate Silver’s predictions about the Electoral College proved precise and far more accurate than those who insisted the election “felt” like a tossup. But, with Silver’s prescience on display, it was hard to overlook the many other “researchers” who got it wrong (looking at you Gallup). Bad research is driven by bad methods—and one method in particular has been on my mind lately:

Snowballing.

When performing social science research in the public sector, identifying a sample of people to survey and study is essential. This identification is the first step in a long series of assumptions you need to make about your research. If you have ever read Freakonomics or Gang Leader for a Day you are already aware of the concept known as snowball sampling, and you likely know why it is controversial.

Snowball sampling is a research method in which you identify a group that you wish to study, and then ask members of the group to identify acquaintances to also join the study. Sudhir Venkatesh, author of Gang Leader for a Day, made this tactic famous when he studied the inner-workings of gang life in the south side of Chicago. Venkatesh immersed himself in the gang and started by talking to a few crack dealers and prostitutes. They in turn referred him to others in the gang, and the sample “snowballed” from there. From his study, he was able to make some astounding assertions regarding the economics of gang life. On one hand, that is the beauty of snowball sampling. It gives researchers the opportunity to identify subjects they may have been unable to identify. On the other, it limits a sample to a select group of people in one large social web. Therefore, in snowball sampling, the sample group is no longer random, and no longer represents the population at large. Without a random sample, a researcher is unable to extrapolate their research to the population at large, and the value of the research is diminished.
Snowball research can also be adapted to other aspects of the research process, such as using it to find sources for a report. By reading one article and looking at the author’s sources, you can continue to find more and more sources, and thus a snowball of information is created. However, this method has its drawbacks; while you may be able to find a large amount of sources, it can lead to serious gaps in your argument.
A snowball point-of-view, also known as a confirmation bias, is the tendency for individuals to test their hypothesis with positive examples as opposed to negative ones. In other words, people tend to use sources of information that prove their argument (thus confirming it), instead of finding sources that disprove it. This tendency often leads to a snowballed perspective, and could lead to a flawed conclusion. This problem is often found in political writing.

Take sequestration for example, some writers rely on partisan groups to prove their points. Depending on their ideology, an author may rely on the Center for American Progress’s definition of how sequestration will impact the federal government, versus how the Cato Institute may define it. Therefore, these authors are just using evidence to confirm their assumptions, as opposed to finding evidence to the contrary-and disproving it with their own logic. This doesn’t just lead a biased perspective, but to an argument with some serious holes.

Where have you been seeing bad research lately? Have you seen any examples of snowballing?

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GBC Infographic Library

Zoe Grotophorst, Clement Christensen, and Dana Grinshpan — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:00:00 -0400

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The Government Business Council, Government Executive's research and analysis division, seeks to bring in-depth research and analysis to federal decision makers. In addition to reports and issue briefs, the Government Business Council regularly publishes infographics, a unique and refreshing way to deliver insightful and impactful research. Below is the complete library of infographics published by the Government Business Council.

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Chief Learning Officers: Teaching the Government's Workforce

Federal agencies in the coming year will have to deal with ongoing budget cuts, a graying workforce, and potentially sequestration. Training will be a vital component in agency efforts to overcome these challenges. In the past decade, numerous agencies have created a Chief Learning Officer position or designation, giving that individual significant potential to ensure agency training efforts are of the highest quality and to advance the agency mission. The efforts and successes of these individuals will be central to the success of their agencies.

To view the infographic : Click here .

The Lifecycle of Retirement

Under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), as long as a federal employee worked 20 to 30 years in government, their benefits were guaranteed, no matter the length of retirement. Since 1983, the federal government has been operating under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), which leaves much of the responsibility of retirement planning up to the individual. In this new infographic, the Government Business Council examines the current state of retirement planning and income security among federal employees.