Lessons in Cybersecurity: What I Learned at RSA

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:38

The RSA Conference (http://www.rsaconference.com/2011/usa) hosts the leadership and a large swath of the membership of the cybersecurity world.  Key figures speak at plenary sessions, including White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Howard Schmidt, Cyber Command Director Keith Alexander, Deputy Secretary of Defense Bill Lynn, DHS Deputy Under Secretary Phil Reitinger, and NIST Director Pat Gallagher.  A much larger number participate in panel sessions and informal discussions.  I moderated a panel around the challenges that security and pri

Improving Business Operations of the U.S. Department of Defense

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:36

The imperative to improve the business operations of the U.S. Department of Defense has never been greater. Secretary of Defense Gates and Deputy Secretary Lynn have clearly articulated the pressing need for reform, driving action across all business areas such as acquisition and logistics, finance, and personnel. Transforming these business processes and systems is motivated by the need to make better use of resources, improve stewardship, and provide the best support possible to the warfighters.

Obama's FY 2012 Management Initiatives

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:34

For the most part, the management section of the budget reflects a continued commitment to initiatives initially detailed in last year’s budget:

“Building a government that works smarter, better, and more efficiently to deliver results for the American people is a cornerstone of the President’s Accountable Government Initiative and a key focus of this Administration.”

This section of the budget is organized around the same three themes outlined in the FY 2011 budget:

Customer Dissatisfaction

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:33

The annual federal customer satisfaction survey covering more than 100 agencies recently reported that 2010 data show the largest one-year drop in satisfaction since the survey began in 1999.

Weekly Round-up: February 11, 2011

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:31

Gadi Ben-Yehuda

 

How Do You Do a Start-up in the Government? Lessons from Leaders

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:08

(Dan Blair, President of the National Academy of Public Administration, collaborated on this blog)

 

Leaders Speak on Leadership and Public Service: Amb. Patrick Kennedy, Adm. Thad Allen, and Dave Wennergren

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:04

For a decade, The Business of Government Hour has brought you leading government executives who are changing the way government does business. Each week, our guests join us for an informative, insightful, and in-depth conversation about their careers, their agencies, agency accomplishments, as well as their vision of government in the 21st century.  Over last five years, we have interviewed more than 250 government executives. It is from this rich library that we have culled together their insights on important public management issues.

Implementing Big, Bold Goals (Part One)

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:03

In a three-part blog series, I will outline a path that I proposed at a UN-sponsored meeting in Switzerland this past April. This first blog deals with the imperative of converting SDG vision into action and highlights the conspicuous absence of implementation mechanisms in the SDG discussions.

Using Prizes as Innovation Engines

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:02

As promised in an earlier blog post on this topic, the IBM Center now has a report, “Managing Innovation Prizes in Government,” by Luciano Kay, with the School of Public Policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Assessing the Obama Administration's Performance Agenda

Submitted by on Fri, 12/22/2017 - 15:01

The CRS report is relatively silent on the potential impact of the recently-signed GPRA Modernization Act on congressional involvement in setting government-wide priorities.  But it does a good job reprising the history of President Obama’s performance initiatives over the past two years, including:

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