Product and project management on Digital.gov

Crafting quality content throughout its lifecycle

Tue, 12 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Learn about the life cycle of content, how content comes across to the user, and how to develop a content management strategy.

You've launched, now what? Planning for the future of your content

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Creating quality digital content is not a one-time endeavor. Explore these approaches to managing and improving excellent digital content over time.

Tips for building a small, scrappy digital team

Fri, 01 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Explore hiring strategies, how to leverage contractors, and creative approaches for building your digital team.

Building a culture of customer experience across government

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0500

The Life Experience teams contain lessons for establishing a culture of customer experience in government, shifting to a focus on organizational practices.

How Login.gov uses roadmapping to build trust with its partners and the public

Mon, 26 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0500

To increase transparency, the Login.gov team publishes a program roadmap that lays out their upcoming initiatives.

10 years of the U.S. Digital Service: Transforming government for the digital age

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Over the past decade, the U.S. Digital Service (USDS) has collaborated with more than 30 federal agencies to create user-friendly, reliable, and seamless digital experiences. Their work prioritizing human-centered design and engineering includes improving services for veterans with Veterans Affairs, launching the Internal Revenue Service Direct File Pilot, and supporting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Looking ahead, USDS remains committed to building trust, fostering innovation, and scaling digital capacity across the federal government, ensuring better service for all Americans.

Reassessing priorities: Adapting to additional work without additional resources

Tue, 23 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Office of Natural Resources Revenue’s Open Data, Design, and Development (ODD) team is taking on management of a fourth website, despite being short-staffed. As a result, they have revisited and reprioritized their yearly goals. To do so, they utilized a prioritization matrix, developed a structured impact assessment, and laid out a transition plan. Their process ensured realistic workload adjustments, improved team morale, and highlighted the importance of practical goal-setting, especially when teams are short-staffed.

Evaluating your agency's accessibility just got a whole lot easier with GSA's OpenACR Editor

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 12:55:00 -0500

To help agencies evaluate the accessibility of their digital products, GSA is making it easier to create Accessibility Conformance Reports through its new OpenACR Editor.

Meet your Digital Experience Council

Tue, 09 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Digital Experience Council plays a critical role in coordinating governmentwide efforts and assisting agencies in delivering digital experiences that meet the public’s needs and expectations.

An introduction to the Digital Experience Council

Thu, 04 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Digital Experience (DX) Council plays a critical role in coordinating governmentwide efforts and assisting agencies in delivering digital experiences that meet the public’s needs and expectations.

18F practices in action (spoiler: this stuff works)

Wed, 03 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

How well do 18F software development practices work? The 18F team reflected on a recent project for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) .gov registry to gauge the effectiveness of six recommendations aligned with what they actually did.

18F at ten

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 14:02:00 -0500

We’re celebrating all the ways we continue to realize our founding vision: bringing technologists into government, launching shared digital services, and helping partner agencies build user-centered technology.

Requirements for improving the management of federal programs and projects

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 16:02:00 -0500

Learn how to implement the Program Management Improvement Accountability Act to deliver better websites and digital services.

Optimizing the federal digital experience: aligning content governance, coordination, and database development

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 09:00:00 -0500

This blog post dives into the details of building a dynamic content database and audit for onrr.gov. Learn how effective subject matter expert (SME) coordination, strategic content planning, and application of visualization tools contribute to enhancing content governance and user experience on a federal website.

In 2023, TTS stepped up to meet growing technology demands for government

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 11:21:00 -0500

GSA’s Technology Transformation Services (TTS) celebrated major milestones and met growing demand for its services in 2023. This wrap-up summaries key successes in five areas: improving customer experience, modernizing federal technology, innovating for the future, focus on equity and accessibility, and building the technology workforce of tomorrow.

Performance.gov

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 15:59:00 -0500

Performance.gov provides the public, agencies, members of Congress, academics, and the media a view into the progress underway to improve federal government performance and accountability to the American public.

TechFAR Hub

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 14:58:00 -0500

Understand how to buy, build, and deliver modern digital services while staying on the correct side of compliance with the TechFAR Hub.

Amplifying customer voices

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 17:38:00 -0500

Understand how to use natural language processing and advanced analytics to gain insights on high-impact service performance and survey design.

Delivering on 21st Century IDEA: A case study from the GSA SmartPay team (Part 3)

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 08:04:00 -0500

A GSA SmartPay product owner shares her experience designing user-centered, accessible content for multiple audiences.

Delivering on 21st Century IDEA: A case study from the GSA SmartPay team (Part 2)

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 08:02:00 -0500

A GSA SmartPay product owner shares his experiences as a first-time product owner in a government agile development project.

Delivering on 21st Century IDEA: A case study from the GSA SmartPay team (Part 1)

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 08:52:00 -0500

The GSA SmartPay program, the largest government charge card and commercial payment solutions program in the world, celebrated their 25th anniversary by launching three new websites with a user-centered, agile approach.

Moving to .gov

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 12:13:00 -0500

If you’re moving to .gov from another top-level domain, like .com, .org, or .us, here are some best practices to help you plan that transition.

Defining benchmarks and targets for intranet KPIs

Wed, 15 Nov 2023 16:41:00 -0500

Discover the keys to intranet success by harmonizing objectives, metrics, benchmarks, and targets. Elevate your organization’s intranet to new heights!

New IDManagement.gov is refreshing the conversation about Zero Trust

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 14:53:00 -0500

IDmanagement.gov has received an update that makes it easier for users to find exactly what they need.

6 lessons from a project handoff

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 11:22:00 -0500

Project handoffs are not simple. Teams have their own cultures and work styles. Without planning, a project could lose institutional memory, time, quality, and funding when it passes from one team to the next. Here are 6 lessons we learned as a recent project changed hands.

Seven tips on facilitating unplanned topics in meetings

Tue, 22 Aug 2023 12:53:00 -0500

Facilitating a workshop can feel like a daunting task. Here at 18F, we’ve identified seven tips to keep your workshop organized and flowing, despite unplanned scenarios.

Who's your website manager?

Fri, 24 Mar 2023 15:29:00 -0500

The importance of HR and accountability to improving digital service delivery at federal agencies.

Am I doing it right? A checkup for agile teams

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 13:42:00 -0500

Even on the best teams, things need to be monitored and adjusted. If you are doing this for the first time, it can be even harder. In this article, I share some signals of what success looks like and what to do if you are stuck in one of the many common pitfalls.

Understanding design in 10 questions

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 10:08:00 -0500

How the discipline of design can help your agency improve customer experience.

Digital governance at GSA

Thu, 23 Feb 2023 17:31:00 -0500

A peek into GSA’s internal processes for managing their websites and improving digital experience.

Bringing design in-house

Fri, 27 Jan 2023 10:11:00 -0500

What is design, who are designers, and how can they help your agency? Learn how to build a design team that can help your agency solve “wicked problems” and be more innovative.

18F Checks in With Jerome Lee and the eAPD Project

Tue, 29 Nov 2022 10:27:00 -0500

18F partnered with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) from December 2017 to June 2020 on the development of a product called eAPD — a user-friendly, modern product to streamline the creation, submission, review, and approval of the Advance Planning Documents that states use to request IT grant funding from CMS. We caught up with Jerome Lee of CMS, the product owner of eAPD.

Senior Executives Part 5: Use Stories as Leading Indicators

Thu, 25 Aug 2022 15:18:00 -0500

Executives often rely on productivity metrics to measure success, but these measures can obscure whether the software is actually working for users. Stories are a better resource to build a strategy between a senior executive and a product team. This is part five in a series on how senior executive and tech teams can be better allies.

Senior Executives Part 4: Initiate More Direct Interaction To Build Rapport

Thu, 18 Aug 2022 20:45:00 -0500

summary

Senior Executives Part 3: Use Short-term Initiatives To Build Confidence in Long-term Decisions

Thu, 11 Aug 2022 20:08:00 -0500

summary

Senior Executives Part 2: Work Outside the Traditional Hierarchy To Set up an Initiative for Success

Tue, 02 Aug 2022 15:31:00 -0500

In order to ultimately succeed at delivering human-centered software, two critical groups need to work closely together: the product team and a champions group. This is part two in a series on how senior executives and tech teams can be better allies.

Webinar Recap: How to Build Your Digital Dream Team

Mon, 01 Aug 2022 13:55:00 -0500

Highlights from the Web Managers Community of Practice panel that shared how to get the right team in place to create a trusted, seamless online experience for all your customers.

Senior Executives Are the Allies Tech Teams Need, Part 1

Wed, 20 Jul 2022 13:50:00 -0500

What Agile Looks Like at the Office of Natural Resources Revenue

Thu, 14 Jul 2022 14:10:00 -0500

Agile at the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) started with 18F. They reflect on where they are today, five years later.

Finding Post-award Balance With Quality Assurance

Mon, 02 May 2022 10:28:00 -0500

Finding post-award balance with quality assurance

Sun, 01 May 2022 13:35:00 -0500

The Weekly Ship: What It Is, Why Useful, and How To Create Your Own

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 12:52:00 -0500

summary

Building a Tech Career in Government

Thu, 07 Oct 2021 15:56:00 -0500

Starting a civic tech career in government is not as unusual as you think. Current GSA employees share how they are building theirs.

Innovation Adoption

Thu, 24 Jun 2021 10:30:00 -0500

Our purpose is to build innovation and intrapreneurship capacity across government by investing in and nurturing innovation, intrapreneurship capabilities, and the innovation experience.

Agile Assessment Guide - Best Practices for Agile Adoption and Implementation

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 16:50:00 -0500

Agile Assessment Guide: Best Practices for Agile Adoption and Implementation—Agile is an approach to software development in which software is developed incrementally and is continuously evaluated for functionality, quality, and customer satisfaction. Agile can reduce the risks of funding a program that fails or produces outdated technology. This GAO guide released in September 2020 presents federal auditors and others with best practices to assess the adoption and use of Agile in federal agencies and elsewhere. It is available in two files: a 268-page PDF, and a 290-page PDF that is accessible.

How to Build an Analytics Strategy

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 14:01:00 -0500

A case study using Digital.gov as an example of how to assess, report, and take action using web analytics as part of an analytics strategy.

Discovery BPA Evaluation Process: How to Operationalize this Practice

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 11:20:00 -0500

This guide provides acquisition professionals the steps and resources needed to operationalize the evaluation process developed for the Discovery BPA.

Product lessons from the front lines of COVID-19 civic tech response

Fri, 16 Oct 2020 00:00:00 -0500

Two Presidential Innovation Fellows share how we can build digital services quickly without compromising quality for the public in times of crisis.

A Federal Guide to De-risk Government Technology Projects

Wed, 09 Sep 2020 09:00:00 -0500

An Introduction to cloud.gov for Product Managers

Tue, 21 Jul 2020 12:00:00 -0500

Essential information that government product managers should know about cloud.gov.

Transform Federal Business Operations: Join the RPA Community of Practice

Fri, 10 Jul 2020 16:00:00 -0500

Federal employees interested in robotic process automation should join the RPA Community of Practice as their agencies commence their RPA programs.

Federal Leadership and Professional Development

Tue, 10 Mar 2020 16:00:00 -0500

Providing federal employees with seminars on leadership, professional development, and strategy.

Foundations of Agile, Part I

Fri, 03 Jan 2020 18:00:00 -0500

18F’s Alan Atlas and Alan Brouilette cover the fundamentals of Agile.

Foundations of Agile, Part II

Fri, 03 Jan 2020 18:00:00 -0500

18F’s Alan Atlas and Alan Brouilette cover the fundamentals of Agile.

U.S. Web Design System

Thu, 12 Dec 2019 19:00:00 -0500

A community for anyone building federal websites with the U.S. Web Design System (USWDS) or considering it for a future project.

U.S. Web Design System

Thu, 11 Apr 2019 23:37:00 -0500

A design system for the federal government that makes it easier to build accessible, mobile-friendly government websites for the American public.

DigitalGov Year in Review: Our Top Blogs, Resources, and Writers for 2016

Fri, 03 Feb 2017 11:25:00 -0500

DigitalGov had a pretty great year in 2016, and that was largely due to a bevy of talented and dedicated writers from over 50 agencies and departments across all 3 branches of the federal government (Thank you!!!). Below, we’ll review some program highlights from the last year, including our top-viewed articles and resources, and tell you how you, too, can contribute to DigitalGov in 2017.

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

18F

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We help government agencies fix technical problems, build products, and improve how government serves the public through technology.

Digital Dashboard

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Measures how U.S. government domains are following best practices for federal websites.

Presidential Innovation Fellows

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We help government agencies fix technical problems, build products, and improve how government serves the public through technology.

Section508.gov

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Guidance for federal agencies on IT accessibility compliance.

U.S. Digital Service

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We deploy small, responsive groups of designers, engineers, product managers, and bureaucracy specialists to work with and empower civil servants.

Chief Information Officer (CIO) Handbook

Fri, 11 Feb 2022 15:32:00 -0500

This handbook aims to give CIOs important information needed to be a technology leader at their respective agency.

OMB M-20-19

Mon, 23 Mar 2020 14:00:00 -0500

Harnessing Technology to Support Mission Continuity

Eight Principles of Mobile-Friendliness

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 14:00:00 -0500

Following these principles will help you make your site more usable and user-friendly.

An advanced approach to accessibility

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 08:00:00 -0500

A deeper look at accessibility: what to do, how to do it, and why it matters.

An Introduction to USWDS 3.0

Thu, 11 Apr 2019 23:37:00 -0500

A design system for the federal government that makes it easier to build accessible, mobile-friendly government websites for the American public.

Checklist of requirements for federal websites and digital services

Thu, 09 Jan 2014 01:20:11 -0400

Links to relevant laws, policies, and regulations for federal agencies.

Join the Web Managers

Thu, 21 Nov 2013 02:31:00 -0500

Create a better online experience for the public alongside government web content managers.

10x

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Provides funding for new technology projects or products across government, from the TTS office of investments.

Digital Analytics Program

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A free analytics tool for measuring digital services in the federal government.

DotGov Registry

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We make it easy to register and manage a .gov domain for US-based government organizations.

FedRAMP

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The Federal Risk and Authorization Management (FedRAMP) is a process that authorizes cloud products and services.

Login.gov

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

An identity management service that provides secure and private online access to participating government programs.

OMB Circular A-130

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Managing Information as a Strategic Resource

Tips for Starting Your Customer Experience Journey

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Low-cost, low-lift actions that any federal employee can take to improve customer experience.

U.S. Web Design System

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A toolkit of principles, guidance, and code that helps agency digital teams build accessible, mobile-friendly government websites for the American public.

An introduction to federal website standards

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 10:12:00 -0500

The federal website standards help agencies provide high-quality, consistent digital experiences for everyone.

Requirements for delivering a digital-first public experience

Fri, 01 Nov 2019 15:00:00 -0500

Learn how to implement 21st Century IDEA to design and deliver better websites and digital services.

Spring 2024 Community Summit

Wed, 13 Mar 2024 10:00:00 -0500

Digital service experts across the federal government will share case studies and best practices on delivering a digital-first public experience.

USWDS Monthly Call - November 2023

Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:00:00 -0500

The USWDS team will continue sharing our progress to improve ongoing research, publishing results and addressing recent findings.

USWDS Monthly Call - October 2023

Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:00 -0500

This month, we’ll share progress and findings from our recent effort to improve our ongoing research practice.

Backlogs and why every website needs one

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 14:00:00 -0500

Join us as we discuss the concept and importance of backlogs and hear real-world examples of successful application in various GSA products and programs.

USWDS Monthly Call - February 2021

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 14:30:00 -0500

Learn what’s next for the U.S. Web Design System and our 2021 Roadmap—what we’re planning to do this year, and why we’re planning to do it.

Federal Crowdsourcing Webinar Series, Episode 15 — 10x: Transforming Technology Through Agile Investments

Thu, 29 Oct 2020 14:00:00 -0500

In this webinar, we will discuss GSA’s incremental investment program, 10x, which is modeled after modern venture capital best practices and start up studios.

A Fresh Start With DevOps - Maybe

Tue, 22 Sep 2020 14:00:00 -0500

When legacy is used to define systems less than five years old, an agency can still encounter DevOps adoption challenges where you least expect them.

Operating Cloud Services Efficiently with Business-Driven IT

Tue, 22 Sep 2020 14:00:00 -0500

Program managers, IT acquisitions leads, and business-minded IT professionals will receive in-depth guidance to improve cloud efficiency, optimization, and effective cost controls.

18F De-risking Guides

Thu, 10 Sep 2020 15:34:00 -0500

The Federal Field Guide to De-risk Government Technology offers guidance to federal agencies on how to structure software development teams, write contracts, and oversee agile software activities to reduce risks and improve outcomes for end-users.

2020 Government UX Summit: July 28, 29, and 30

Tue, 28 Jul 2020 11:30:00 -0500

A remote event covering user experience (UX) methods, service design, and managing UX in the government.

10x Project Lightning Talks: 2020

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 14:00:00 -0500

10x project teams will demonstrate their work to date and provide brief overviews of each project. We hope that these talks will highlight some of the most interesting work happening in government today and inspire others to submit ideas to 10x.

Air Force COOL and 18F: Partnership and Flight Operations Software Agile Lessons Learned

Tue, 23 Jun 2020 14:00:00 -0500

Highlights from the Air Force Materiel Command & 18F partnership and the importance of organizational structure, roles of the core team, and user outreach for military and government DevOps.

DevOps Lessons Learned from the Air Force’s Early Cloud Journey

Tue, 19 May 2020 14:00:00 -0500

Lessons learned in the areas of people, processes, and tools from early efforts in the Air Force’s journey to a multi-cloud environment.

You Are a Product Manager (Though You May Not Know It)

Wed, 06 May 2020 14:00:00 -0500

We will define product management, discuss how it’s used in the government context through a case study, and arm listeners with practices to use and evangelize product thinking.

The Hero's Journey for Re-Skilling Talent (And Other Digital Adventures)

Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:00:00 -0500

For those seeking ways to internally re-skill their workforce for digital transformation, a look at mythology reveals a recurring theme where those answering the call are involved in an iterative cycle of ’leveling-up’, a theme that may help change-agents set conditions for successful retention and growth of organic digital talent.

Experimenting with the Micro-Purchase Threshold

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 09:30:00 -0500

Through the use of an open-source procurement process, we created an experiment others can replicate to encourage Agile thinking.

Strengthen Your Organization's Vision Through Collaboration

Wed, 22 Apr 2020 16:00:00 -0500

Inclusive visioning helps accelerate successful outcomes. To help agencies innovate from within, bring people together to make big IT Modernization strategies come to fruition.

Cloud.gov for Product Managers

Wed, 22 Apr 2020 14:00:00 -0500

In this webinar, we will answer commonly asked questions about cloud.gov and explain how using cloud.gov enables development teams to deploy applications quickly and securely.

Why I Love My Agile Team!

Tue, 24 Mar 2020 15:00:00 -0500

Join us as we meet with Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) who is utilizing an agile approach to assist in further updating their topographical information and data.

Continuous Learning for Product Managers

Tue, 24 Mar 2020 13:00:00 -0500

As product managers, we never stop learning because products never stop evolving and changing. You need to quickly get up to speed on a product’s technical implementation, design, user research, and business needs.

Call for Participation: Government UX Summit 2020

Thu, 27 Feb 2020 09:00:00 -0500

We’re looking for speakers to share their experiences as UX practitioners in government.

Even with a design system, you still need a designer

Thu, 13 Feb 2020 16:00:00 -0500

The U.S. Web Design System gives flexibility to teams to build the right solution for users, but there are still plenty of design decisions that teams need to make to be successful. In short, you’ll still need a designer.

Adopting the USWDS, One Step at a Time

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 19:00:00 -0500

The U.S. Web Design System is key to new website standards

10x Project Lightning Talks

Mon, 27 Jan 2020 14:00:00 -0500

In this webinar, 10x project teams demonstrate their work to date and provide brief overviews of each project. Topics range from federating data to agile budgeting to machine learning, and our hope is that these talks will inspire others to submit ideas to 10x.

Long-term teams, not sudden handoffs

Mon, 09 Dec 2019 12:00:00 -0500

Don’t let your agency waste knowledge and opportunity. Instead of planning for a handoff to O&M, plan for a long-term team. Instead of launching and then keeping it running, plan for ongoing development.

Building the Elements That Earn Trust

Mon, 18 Nov 2019 08:34:00 -0500

This week, we’d like to talk about trust, and the elements that go into building trust with people who are using our services.

Intro to Kanban, Part II

Thu, 14 Nov 2019 14:30:00 -0500

Part two of an introduction to Kanban and how to use it to model any flow-based process.

Intro to Kanban, Part I

Wed, 13 Nov 2019 15:00:00 -0500

Part one of an introduction to Kanban and how to use it to model any flow-based process.

Basics of Scrum, Part II

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 15:00:00 -0500

Scrum is the most widely used Agile software development methodology. This second session will go into more detail about what is happening during each of the Scrum ceremonies.

Meet Your Federal Web Council

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 13:30:00 -0500

When something important needs to be coordinated across the federal web space, the Federal Web Council is the vehicle for getting it done.

Basics of Scrum, Part I

Fri, 08 Nov 2019 13:30:00 -0500

Scrum is the most widely used Agile software development methodology. This session will cover the basics of Scrum at a very high level.

Foundations of Agile, Part II

Tue, 05 Nov 2019 15:30:00 -0500

Part two of exploring the fundamentals of the Agile methodology will look at the external view of producing customer value and the difficulty of adopting Agile methods.

Foundations of Agile, Part I

Mon, 04 Nov 2019 13:30:00 -0500

This is the first of two sessions that will explore the fundamentals of the Agile methodology.

Let’s Talk 21st Century IDEA

Mon, 04 Nov 2019 10:00:00 -0500

We are starting a new blog post series on 21st Century IDEA that’ll break down one essential topic and point to guidance to start running with it.

Building Product Management Capacity in Government, part 1

Thu, 24 Oct 2019 11:00:00 -0500

18F is kicking off a new series on building product management capacity in government agencies that explores the process of helping people in government transition into product management roles through experiential learning.

How to Navigate the Complex World of Federal Digital Policy

Wed, 18 Sep 2019 15:00:00 -0500

Tori Garten will explore the multi-tiered challenge of understanding and governing federal digital policy in a complex and ever-changing digital world.

Get Your Idea Funded Through 10x

Tue, 09 Jul 2019 09:00:00 -0500

Introducing a new investment fund for technology products in the federal government

You might not be as agile as you think you are

Tue, 18 Jun 2019 17:00:00 -0500

The mandate to be agile is everywhere. But agile isn’t an on-off switch. It’s a skill and a mindset that is developed over time, through dedicated work, open teams, and lots (and lots) of practice

U.S. Web Design System: May Monthly Call

Thu, 23 May 2019 14:30:00 -0500

Join the U.S. Web Design System team as we talk through the recent update to 2.0

Making tough content choices

Mon, 20 May 2019 12:00:00 +0000

Making tough content choices is user-centered. Having no content for a certain subject is often better for the user than having outdated, misleading, or erroneous content.

How Presidential Innovation Fellows and 18F Support One Another in Agencies

Tue, 07 May 2019 11:00:00 -0500

Two teams working together to help agencies become more effective at meeting the needs of citizens.

Journey Maps as Communication Tools

Tue, 07 May 2019 10:00:00 +0000

The team at Office of Natural Resources Revenue wrote about how they use journey mapping to help teams look at their agency’s processes in a more comprehensive way.

Introducing USWDS 2.0

Mon, 08 Apr 2019 09:00:00 -0500

Today’s update introduces a powerful toolkit of new features to help make creating useful, consistent digital services faster, simpler, and more fun.

18F Guide to Product Management

Wed, 03 Apr 2019 17:34:00 -0500

Best practices on doing product management well

18F Methods

Tue, 02 Apr 2019 17:25:00 -0500

A collection of tools that describe how teams can put human-centered design into practice.

Q&A With Ryan Day About GSA’s API Strategy

Wed, 27 Mar 2019 13:00:00 -0500

These new API standards will make it easier for GSA staff to launch and maintain good APIs.

A Year in the Life of a PIF

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 12:38:00 -0500

As a Presidential Innovation Fellow in my second year, I often get asked by the newer class of PIFs coming in, “What does a successful PIF year typically look like?”

Becoming a product manager

Sun, 17 Mar 2019 10:49:00 -0500

Go Beyond Coaching and Mentorship and Get Started as a Sponsor

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 09:00:00 -0500

One step beyond mentorship is another practice called sponsorship: action-orientated, deeply invested support that helps others in their long-term professional advancement.

Why Our Country Needs More Civic Tech Leaders

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 09:00:00 -0500

Government is a great place to work for technologists, data scientists, designers and entrepreneurs who want to serve and solve problems for the American people.

Introducing the 2019 Presidential Innovation Fellows

Thu, 14 Feb 2019 09:24:00 -0500

We are excited to announce our 2019 Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF) who have begun their “tour of duty” in American tech.

Health Tech Sprint Aims at Improving Care Access and Experience

Fri, 02 Nov 2018 10:40:00 -0500

This sprint is designed to improve care by assisting in access to novel therapeutics and improving clinical trials.

GSA Steps Up Security for .gov

Mon, 29 Oct 2018 15:00:00 -0500

GSA’s DotGov Program is modernizing the security of .gov to make government websites and systems more secure.

Want a More Innovative Agency? Encourage Employees to Experiment

Wed, 19 Sep 2018 10:12:00 -0500

How agency leaders can create a work environment that fosters innovation via creativity and experimentation.

Collaborating for Better Design, Technology, and User Experience

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 12:18:00 -0500

Overview of initiatives across Federal government that focus on IT design, development and accessibility.

Experiments in Tweaking Agile for UX

Tue, 17 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Designers at the Federal Reserve Board share how they adjusted the agile process to work better for their team.

Accessibility for content designers

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Getting started How to use this guide: We recommend conducting accessibility testing throughout the design and development processes. If you have project-specific questions, ask your agency’s accessibility team. Plain language Can you quickly understand the main points of the content? Why it’s important Karin is not a native English speaker and she sometimes has trouble decoding legal or bureaucratic language. John has a developmental disability and has difficulty interpreting content written above a sixth-grade reading level.

Accessibility for front-end developers

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Getting started Accessible front-end development ensures people with different abilities can access, understand, and navigate web content, regardless of how they’re accessing it. Front-end developers collaborate with other members of a cross-functional team to implement a robust user experience. How to use this guide: We recommend conducting accessibility testing throughout the design and development processes. A good place to start testing is on high-touch pages, critical user paths, and site-wide templates.

Accessibility for product managers

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Getting started Product managers play a vital role in communicating accessibility requirements early in the project lifecycle, ensuring each team member knows their responsibility, and keeping the team accountable for building accessible products. Following these steps, you’ll make sure you’re not only following legal requirements, but making your product more usable for everyone. Why you should care Any product released by the government must conform to the standards of Section 508 (which aligns with the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.

Accessibility for user experience designers

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Getting started Accessibility is usability for people who interact with products differently. Your role is to help the team approach accessibility as a facet of user experience rather than checklist of requirements. How to use this guide: If you have project-specific questions, ask your agency’s accessibility team. Inclusive design Adopt an inclusive design mentality Celebrate accessibility requirements as a set of design constraints that help you create a better product for all users.

Accessibility for visual designers

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 09:00:00 -0500

Getting started Everyone benefits from designs that are easier to see. People with different visual abilities see your designs in varying ways—the diverse nature of impairments creates a wide variation in how your designs are perceived. A clean and clear visual presentation helps everyone make sense of a website’s information and functionality. How to use this guide: We recommend planning for accessibility in your design process and regularly conducting accessibility testing throughout the design and development processes.

Connected Government Act

Mon, 25 Jun 2018 09:00:00 -0400

Resources to help your agency comply with the Connected Government Act.

Funding the Future: Technology Modernization Fund Proposal Workshop

Fri, 08 Jun 2018 10:00:00 -0500

GSA’s Emerging Citizen Technology Office (ECTO) and the Technology Modernization Fund Program Management Office (TMF PMO) are hosting an online workshop at GSA on June 8, 2018 to hands-on assist agencies with developing proposals for TMF that advance emerging technologies and programs that can improve our services and reduce costs for the American people today and in the coming years. Emerging technology solutions employed by agencies across government, combined with the operational rigor and funding of the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF), hold the potential to drive to incredible performance enhancements in public services.

An Overview of the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF)

Tue, 22 May 2018 12:00:00 -0500

The Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) Program Management Office and the GSA Emerging Citizen Technology Office (ECTO) are hosting a conversation to help agencies develop proposals for technology modernization projects.

A Deep Dive Into Top Tasks with Gerry McGovern

Wed, 11 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -0500

This talk will focus on how using the top tasks approach will help you deliver what your customers want to make it easier and faster for people to do things they need to do with government.

Thinking About Going Agile? 5 Benefits Your Office Will Reap With Agile Methods

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -0500

Five benefits of using agile methodologies that can help federal employees improve the quality of their work.

Conversations on Public Impact: How data trusts can preserve and protect your digital initiatives

Wed, 21 Mar 2018 15:00:00 -0500

The Ethics Working Group in GSA’s Technology Transformation Service hosts a presentation about data trusts; a legal structure designed to manage data, code, and other digital assets.

Thinking About Going Agile? Consider Mass Training to Facilitate the Change

Tue, 13 Mar 2018 12:00:00 -0500

How organizational instruction can help transform the processes and culture of your office.

Redesigning an Intranet Site: Final Stages, Launch, and Lessons Learned

Wed, 07 Mar 2018 12:00:00 -0500

Helpful lessons from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) on the redesign of an intranet.

Trends on Tuesday: Because Seeing is Believing—Augmented Reality in the Federal Government

Tue, 06 Feb 2018 12:00:00 -0400

See how augmented reality may be used for data management and cybersecurity practices.

Responding to a Disaster: How USAGov Helped Shape the Digital Response in Puerto Rico

Tue, 09 Jan 2018 11:00:00 -0500

This interactive talk with a USAGov team member will highlight the digital response in Puerto Rico during and after Hurricane Maria.

3 Ways to Manage Research Projects Remotely

Tue, 03 Oct 2017 16:28:00 -0400

Being a remote team doesn’t mean you should forgo any of your research rituals. It means finding different ways to do them.

Managing Custom Software Development in Government When You're Not a Software Engineer

Thu, 21 Sep 2017 16:10:00 -0400

As custom software development becomes integral to accomplishing any program’s mission, many managers in government find themselves faced with handling the unfamiliar: overseeing the design and implementation of a digital product that is functional, user-friendly, and necessary for realizing your program’s mission.

The Data Briefing: Will Artificial Intelligence Tools Replace or Augment Federal Employees?

Wed, 20 Sep 2017 11:00:44 -0400

A Washington, D.C. think tank recently released reports advocating using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to reorganize the federal government.

Design and Conflict: Do You Know Your Conflict Style?

Mon, 18 Sep 2017 09:00:34 -0400

Building empathy towards users is always a part of the UX process, but it’s not always common practice to build empathy towards our teammates. Here’s an idea to proactively address conflict and build empathy through understanding on your team.

How Federal Leaders Can Build the Will, Skill, and Velocity Needed for Digital Transformation

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 03:00:31 -0400

Learning—and practicing—five imperatives of network leadership can help agencies improve their odds for successful digital transformation. Many organizations are undergoing digital transformation because the organizations see that it is necessary for long-term survival. However, digitally reinventing the organization is “one of the hardest journeys to make.” According to industry experts, two-thirds of organizations will fail

Government Launches Login.Gov to Simplify Access to Public Services

Mon, 28 Aug 2017 09:04:54 -0400

Joel Minton, a member of the U.S. Digital Service, is working with GSA’s Technology Transformation Service as the director of login.gov. Tom Mills is the Chief Technology Architect at U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In early April, the U.S. Digital Service and 18F launched login.gov, a single sign-on solution for government websites that will enable

NIST Publishes NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework

Tue, 22 Aug 2017 12:00:51 -0400

Categorizing and Describing Cybersecurity Work for the Nation The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) is pleased to announce the release of Special Publication 800-181, the NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework. This publication serves as a fundamental reference to support a workforce capable of meeting an organization’s cybersecurity needs. It provides organizations with a common, consistent

Have You Critiqued Your Critique Process?

Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:00:00 -0400

DEMO Whenever I hear someone complain about the process of a design critique, I’m always a bit surprised. Blame it on the fact

The Data Briefing: Ten Years of Digital Transformation—Lessons Learned

Wed, 26 Jul 2017 12:00:00 -0400

Since 2007, a major consulting firm has conducted an annual survey on organizations’ “Digital IQ.” In the ten years of organizations grappling with digital transformation, what has been learned?

The Data Briefing: The Arrival of Generation Z into the Federal Government. And Generation A?

Wed, 21 Jun 2017 14:58:31 -0400

In the last national election, the earliest born members of Generation Z voted for the first time. In 2019, the American workforce will see the influx of tens of millions of Gen Zers who, according to some researchers, will be a stark contrast to the Millennials that will make the largest part of the 2020

Four Challenges of Adopting Team Structures (And How Leaders Can Mitigate Them)

Thu, 15 Jun 2017 12:00:00 -0400

If you’re considering “going agile,” one of the critical components of such a transformation will be adopting team structures. In your current, pre-teaming state, your developers are probably working by themselves, and may be engaging directly with stakeholders. Agile will place your developers into teams. Teaming is important, as it will enable your development staff

FedRAMP 5th Anniversary

Tue, 13 Jun 2017 14:10:23 -0400

This week we are excited to celebrate FedRAMP’s fifth birthday! The program has come a long way over the past five years, as we have been able to grow and transform the program to continue to meet the evolving needs of our partners .

FICAM’s New Resources Help Solve Government’s Identity Management Challenge

Mon, 12 Jun 2017 10:11:06 -0400

In today’s digital world, it’s imperative that government agencies safeguard citizens’ physical and electronic security. In the world of Federal IT, adopting and advancing cybersecurity can’t be accomplished in one day, or by one agency. Federal agencies must work together to tackle complex problems and stay ahead of evolving network threats. The Federal Identity, Credential,

Hybrid Cloud: A Key to Phasing in New Technologies

Thu, 08 Jun 2017 11:00:38 -0400

Like any newer technology, cloud computing has faced adoption challenges. IT managers understand the huge potential efficiency improvements and savings that cloud computing can bring to their agencies, but also have questions about security, compatibility, and funding. With these concerns and without a clear path to cloud computing, many agencies continue to maintain on-premises solutions.

The Data Briefing: Design-Driven Enterprise Architecture Creating the New Federal Government Agency

Wed, 07 Jun 2017 12:00:19 -0400

It’s been a while since I’ve checked in on enterprise architecture (EA). My last in-depth work with EA was around 2011 when I was on detail to the Office of Personnel Management’s Open Government Team. The EA model I worked with was the top-down organizational design of information technology assets, data assets, and business processes.

Opening Public Services to Artificial Intelligence Assistants

Tue, 06 Jun 2017 14:02:20 -0400

“Hey, Computer, how do I access my public services?” Citizens will soon be able to ask their Intelligent Personal Assistants (IPA) this question through an Emerging Citizen Technology open-sourced pilot program. The purpose of the initiative is to guide dozens of federal programs make public service information available through automated, self-service platforms for the home

Federalist Is out of Beta and Open for Business

Mon, 05 Jun 2017 11:00:17 -0400

If you’re a program manager or a federal web developer you’ve probably been given a seemingly simple task: Create a basic website as part of a new initiative at your agency. The hardest part is often not crafting the content or designing the prototype, but getting the security and privacy compliance in order to launch

From Launch to Landing: How NASA Took Control of Its HTTPS Mission

Fri, 26 May 2017 12:00:50 -0400

18F Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Karim Said of NASA. Karim was instrumental in NASA’s successful HTTPS and HSTS migration, and we’re happy to help Karim share the lessons NASA learned from that process. In 2015, the White House Office of Management and Budget released M-15-13, a “Policy to Require Secure Connections

The Next Step Towards a Bug Bounty Program for the Technology Transformation Service

Thu, 18 May 2017 02:00:07 -0400

We took a big step toward creating a bug bounty program for our agency by issuing an award to HackerOne for a Software-as-a-Service bug-reporting platform.

Becoming an Agile Content Team

Tue, 16 May 2017 14:00:16 -0400

In March, the team of writers and editors at USAGov adopted some agile principles in an attempt to streamline our content development process. We hoped operating in a more agile manner would help us address some of the challenges we were facing as a team:

My Q & A with the IT Industry – What’s Working and What Could be Improved in Federal Acquisition

Thu, 11 May 2017 12:00:53 -0400

I recently met with more than 50 representatives from the top IT services companies and talked about the good and the bad in federal acquisition. Some of the discussion was surprising … some not so much. The key takeaways include some changes that are fairly simple for government to implement, yet have big impacts. 1.

Cybersecurity: Protecting Manufacturing Technology and Innovation

Thu, 04 May 2017 15:00:45 -0400

Recently a segment on my favorite morning news program stopped me in my tracks. The young and attractive hosts (why are they always so young and attractive?) were demonstrating new appliances including a smart refrigerator. The fridge was equipped with all kinds of high-tech features including touch screen displays, a camera inside that allows you

DHS Study on Mobile Device Security

Thu, 04 May 2017 12:00:43 -0400

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has submitted a report to Congress that details current and emerging threats to the Federal government’s use of mobile devices and recommends security improvements to the mobile device ecosystem. The DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) led the study in coordination with the National Institute of Standards and Technology

FOIA Best Practices Workshop Continues This Summer

Wed, 03 May 2017 11:00:41 -0400

The Office of Information Policy (OIP) is pleased to announce two new topics and dates for our Best Practices Workshop series as we continue this initiative this summer.

GetMyFuture.org: Essential Youth Resources, Now

Tue, 02 May 2017 14:00:39 -0400

They say that life can be summed up as the process of a series of doors closing. By that, they mean that opportunities for taking different paths start to disappear as you move through life. It’s a logical sentiment, but there’s an obverse to it. When you’re young, all those doors are open. Doors as far as you can see. It’s all about learning how to make informed decisions about what doors to wander through.

Build Your Audience by Hosting a Twitter Chat

Mon, 01 May 2017 15:00:08 -0400

Twitter is more than just a platform for sharing news and updates: it can be a tool for directly communicating with your community and understanding what is important to them. One way you can connect with your Twitter audience is by hosting a Twitter Chat. They can be a good way to discuss key topics,

A Deeper Look into the USDA.gov Website Redesign

Wed, 26 Apr 2017 11:00:11 -0400

We hope you are finding it easier to get the information you need on USDA.gov following the launch of our site redesign in March. We’ve already welcomed over 1 million visitors to the new site and we are pleased with the positive feedback we’ve received thus far. Our redesign makes it easier for you to

Congress.gov 2017 Spring Cleaning: Download Search Results and Advanced Search Enhancements

Tue, 25 Apr 2017 14:19:20 -0400

Spring is a beautiful time of year in Washington, D.C. The temperature warms up; the cherry blossoms are out; and we frequently have an update of Congress.gov to share. In 2015 we added treaties and web-friendly bill text, and in 2016 we expanded the quick search feature. Today there is another round of enhancements to the Library of Congress website for

Federal Pilot to Integrate Public Services Into Intelligent Personal Assistants

Mon, 24 Apr 2017 11:00:33 -0400

The demand for more automated, self-service access to United States public services, when and where citizens need them, grows each day—and so do advances in the consumer technologies like Intelligent Personal Assistants designed to meet those challenges. The U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA)

OIP Seeks Your Participation in the Development of the National FOIA Portal

Thu, 20 Apr 2017 02:05:13 -0400

The Office of Information Policy (OIP) is pleased to announce its collaboration with GSA’s 18F team on the development of a National FOIA Portal. This is the next step in a long line of OIP initiatives working towards a National FOIA Portal going back to 2010 with the launch of FOIA.gov. Most recently, the FOIA

DotGov Domain Registration Program to Provide HTTPS Preloading in May

Wed, 12 Apr 2017 14:19:47 -0400

Effective May 15, 2017, GSA’s DotGov Domain Registration Program will begin providing HSTS Preloading services for federal agencies. This new service helps ensure that visitor communication with .gov websites is not modified or compromised, and hostile networks cannot inject malware, tracking beacons, or otherwise monitor or change visitor interactions online.

To Get Things Done, You Need Great, Secure Tools

Tue, 11 Apr 2017 11:00:12 -0400

To folks new to government, one of the most surprising differences between our work and work in the private sector are the barriers in accessing commercially available software, and commercially available Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) in particular. There are good reasons for these barriers: the government places premiums on considerations such as security, privacy, accessibility, license management,

Color in Digital Design

Tue, 04 Apr 2017 11:00:46 -0400

How do we choose color in digital design? In print, we have the Pantone fan and what you see is what you get — as long as your printer is color calibrated. With computer monitors, one does not get such precision, even within one office. So how much time and effort do you spend on color selection?

A Complete Redesign with You in Mind

Wed, 29 Mar 2017 01:00:36 -0400

We’re excited to launch a complete redesign of USDA.gov featuring stronger visual storytelling components, a more modern user-experience with easy to find services and resources, and to top it off, a completely mobile-friendly design. Through careful planning, thoughtful design, and a primary focus on user experience and usability, we’ve taken the best of government and industry

New ITIF Report Inspires a Closer Look at Website Performance and Security—Here Is Where to Begin

Fri, 24 Mar 2017 11:02:04 -0400

The Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF) recently published a report, Benchmarking U.S. Government Websites, that looks at the performance, security, and accessibility of the top 297 government websites.

The Data Briefing: Understand Serverless Architecture in Three Minutes

Wed, 15 Mar 2017 11:02:43 -0400

You may have heard of “serverless architecture” or Amazon Web Services (AWS) Lambda product and wondered what is unique about this new buzzword. As with many new digital cloud technologies, serverless architecture could mean two things. It may be applications that are built using third-party cloud applications. Or serverless architectures could be pieces of code

Letting Go of 85 Percent of Our Email Subscribers

Mon, 13 Mar 2017 13:04:16 -0400

Late last year, Business.USA.gov (BUSA) began transitioning its web presence to USA.gov and with its content, came its social media and email accounts. While transferring ownership of a Twitter account is fairly easy to do from a technical standpoint, transferring email ownership and tools is not. We had to tackle

The Data Briefing: Finding the New Federal Government Technologists

Wed, 08 Mar 2017 02:05:17 -0400

This week, I want to briefly discuss the human resources challenges in finding the new IT technology workers for the government. As agencies move toward microservices, artificial intelligence chatbots, and deep learning application programming interfaces (APIs), the demand for experts in these fields continues to grow fast. The universities and professional development programs are not

DigitalGov Readers and Subscribers: We Want to Talk to You (Again)

Wed, 08 Mar 2017 01:19:51 -0400

We at DigitalGov want to hear more about you – your job, your role, the challenges you face — all of it — as you work to deliver more secure, effective, and reliable digital services for the public.

Webinar Recap: Better, Faster, and More Flexible—U.S. Web Design Standards Update

Thu, 09 Feb 2017 12:00:10 -0400

The Road to Launch Version 1.0 You may have noticed a new, cleaner, and more modern look to some government websites over the last year—these are the web properties that were early adopters of the Draft U.S. Web Design Standards from 18F, the digital services agency which is part of the General Services Administration (GSA).

Accessibility for teams

Wed, 01 Feb 2017 09:00:00 -0500

A ‘quick-start’ guide for embedding accessibility and inclusive design practices into your team’s workflow

Automatic HTTPS Enforcement for New Executive Branch .gov Domains

Thu, 19 Jan 2017 12:00:30 -0400

HTTPS is a necessary baseline for security on the modern web. Non-secure HTTP connections lack integrity protection, and can be used to attack citizens, foreign nationals, and government staff. HTTPS provides increased confidentiality, authenticity, and integrity that mitigate these attacks.

The Life-Changing Magic of Writing Release Notes

Thu, 19 Jan 2017 02:00:17 -0400

A key part of agile development is constantly shipping new features. The team behind the Federal Election Commission’s (FEC) beta website ships new features at least once every two weeks. Sometimes the features are big, noticeable changes, such as the new home page we recently launched. And other times they’re small (a copy edit, an

DigitalGov University in Review: 2016 Training Trends

Wed, 11 Jan 2017 12:00:02 -0400

Thanks to your participation, DigitalGov University (DGU), the events platform for DigitalGov, hosted over 90 events with 6,648 attendees from over 100 agencies across federal, tribal, state, and local governments.

Five Lessons Learned During a Content Audit

Mon, 05 Dec 2016 12:00:42 -0400

As part of USAGov’s efforts to provide our audience with the reliable and quality information that they need, this summer, the Health, Education & Benefits (HE&B) topic desk completed its first content audit. Methodology and Results Data informed every step we took. In order to determine which areas to focus on first, the desk gathered

In a Marketing Minute: Connecting Teams, Promotions, and Ideas

Mon, 05 Dec 2016 10:00:57 -0400

Every first week of every month, USAGov’s marketing team sends an office-wide email newsletter to give an update on past and current marketing efforts and campaigns. It’s how we try to help keep the rest of the office in the know. The monthly newsletter can spur a content idea, a future marketing endeavor, and act

FIPNet Digital Imaging Partner Guidance Now Available

Fri, 02 Dec 2016 14:00:55 -0400

Guidance for Contributing Digital Content to FDsys (govinfo) is now available on FDLP.gov. Federal Information Preservation Network (FIPNet) digital imaging partners now have guidance documentation for creating and contributing digitally-imaged U.S. Government content to Federal Digital System (FDsys)/govinfo*. The guidance specifications are based on current best practices from the Federal Agency Digitization Guidelines Initiative and

The Future of Technology at GSA

Fri, 02 Dec 2016 12:00:54 -0400

The potential to transform government and impact the lives of Americans is tremendous. Our country needs the government to work well, and technology is the key to that.

Lessons Learned: Evaluating Video Content

Thu, 01 Dec 2016 12:00:23 -0400

If you were to perform research on the value proposition of training videos, you would notice that opinions are split on their efficacy. Despite all the tools that are out there that can help you evaluate video quality, views, and drop-off, there are some things that should be considered in the analysis of your organization’s

Sharing Public Service Visions for Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence

Wed, 30 Nov 2016 12:00:46 -0400

I’m taking a break from sorting through dozens of concepts from federal agencies about how they want to use artificial intelligence and virtual reality for citizens in the coming months in order to share with you just some of these groundbreaking initiatives of tomorrow that can be explored at a DigitalGov University workshop this week.

Health IT Services SIN — Ready to Serve Agencies

Tue, 29 Nov 2016 12:00:35 -0400

This summer I announced the the release of our new Health IT Services Special Item Number (SIN 132–56) on IT Schedule 70. Now, I am happy to report that the SIN has been awarded to 65 highly qualified industry partners — with that number continuing to grow daily as new contracts are being awarded. With such a

Digging Deep Using the Core Model

Fri, 18 Nov 2016 10:00:34 -0400

The core model is a thinking tool that can be used to get team members from different perspectives (stakeholders, developers, editors, etc.) to start thinking collaboratively. The end goal is that the group will have a common understanding of user needs, business goals, and how different pages should be connected.

New Trademark App Open Source Code on GitHub

Fri, 18 Nov 2016 03:00:31 -0400

Improving the way the government delivers information technology (IT) solutions to its customers isn’t just a goal, it’s our mission. We at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office know that by publishing our open source code, the public can help us come up with new and better IT solutions. In advance of the new Federal

FEMA’S Syndicated Content: Digital Assists in Moments of Disaster

Thu, 17 Nov 2016 12:00:39 -0400

I recently interviewed Daniel Kuhns, Web Manager at FEMA, about the site widgets and the FEMA app his organization has been developing. The widgets currently available include: FEMA App, Preparedness, Severe Weather, Private Sector, Kids Fire Safety, and Are you a Disaster Survivor. The FEMA App offers

Congress.gov Homepage Highlights, Alerts, and More Enhancements

Wed, 16 Nov 2016 11:00:37 -0400

This has been an exciting and successful year for Congress.gov. We accomplished a major milestone when we retired THOMAS in July. Over the course of 2016, we completed a number of enhancements to Congress.gov. In April we expanded quick search to include the Congressional Record, Committee Reports, Nominations, Treaty Documents, and Communications. In May we launched several new RSS feeds and

Hualapai Public Safety Meet Old and New Challenges Through Technology

Mon, 14 Nov 2016 11:00:06 -0400

How can a place be remote and virtually unpopulated, yet constantly full of thousands of people and teeming with activity? It certainly seems impossible, but that is exactly the situation at Grand Canyon West (GCW), home of the Hualapai indigenous Indian Tribe and the famous Skywalk.

NASA Addresses OMB M-16-21 Federal Source Code Policy

Thu, 10 Nov 2016 03:00:22 -0400

In August 2016, OMB released M-16-21, which seeks to ensure that new custom-developed federal source code be made broadly available for reuse across the federal government.

The Data Briefing: Four Steps to Becoming a Data-Driven Organization

Wed, 09 Nov 2016 11:00:45 -0400

As the Federal government agencies begin the digital transformation journey, becoming a data-driven organization is even more vital. What does it mean to become a data-driven organization? According to one definition, “[a] data-driven company is an organization where every person who can use data to make better decisions, has access to the data they need

Challenge.gov Launches One-Click Reporting for Annual Prizes Data Call

Wed, 09 Nov 2016 05:43:18 -0400

This year, the deadline for agencies to submit their reporting of incentive prize competitions and challenges for FY16 comes earlier than most. Roughly two weeks from today, by Nov. 18, federal agencies are required to submit their accounts of every prize, competition, or challenge that launched, ran or completed in FY16 via email.

The People’s Code – Now on Code.gov

Mon, 07 Nov 2016 13:00:08 -0400

Summary: Today we’re launching Code.gov so that our Nation can continue to unlock the tremendous potential of the Federal Government’s software. Over the past few years, we’ve taken unprecedented action to help Americans engage with their Government in new and meaningful ways. Using Vote.gov, citizens can now quickly navigate their state’s voter registration process through

Celebrating Nanotechnology With a Day, a Dash, Some Nuggets, and a Plan

Fri, 04 Nov 2016 11:00:56 -0400

Summary: The release of an updated National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan caps a month of activities highlighting nanotechnology. The Federal government continues to play a key role in the success of the U.S. nanotechnology enterprise through the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI)—as was

The Digital Transition: How the Presidential Transition Works in the Social Media Age

Wed, 02 Nov 2016 12:00:25 -0400

Take a look at how we plan to preserve and pass on the digital history of the Obama administration. President Obama is the first “social media president”: the first to have @POTUS on Twitter, the first to go live on Facebook from the Oval Office, the first to answer questions from citizens on YouTube.

The Data Briefing: Learning from the U.S. Cities on How to Implement Big Data Initiatives

Wed, 02 Nov 2016 10:00:36 -0400

A recent study of big data initiatives in 65 cities has interesting guidance for Federal big data initiatives. The researchers studied how data is collected and then used for decision making in what they called “the framework for Big Data initiatives.” There are two major cycles in the framework: “The data cycle governs the tools

Trends on Tuesdays: Mobile Phone Camera Upgrades Offer Interesting Opportunities for Government Agencies

Tue, 01 Nov 2016 10:00:43 -0400

Professional photographer and early “iPhonography” pioneer, Chase Jarvis coined the phrase, “The best camera is the one that’s with you.” The recent jumps in mobile phone photo technology presents interesting opportunities for government agencies to consider as mobile phone cameras are starting to rival and surpass professional gear. When Google and Apple both announced their

Three Small Steps You Can Take to Reboot Agile in Your Organization

Mon, 31 Oct 2016 11:00:10 -0400

This past summer, 18F held an agile workshop for the National Technical Information Service (NTIS), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. An agency with roots going back to World War II, NTIS is facing a future that requires a strategic realignment towards open data and services. This strategic alignment will also require that NTIS

Laying the Foundation for a More Secure, Modern Government

Fri, 28 Oct 2016 03:00:16 -0400

Summary: Building on efforts to boost Federal cybersecurity & as part of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, today we’re releasing a proposed guidance to modernize Federal IT. America’s spirit of ingenuity and entrepreneurship created the world’s most innovative economy and keeps us dominant in today’s digital age. Indeed, in 1985 about 2,000 people used the Internet;

Federally Funded Research Results Are Becoming More Open and Accessible

Fri, 28 Oct 2016 01:00:53 -0400

Summary: Significant strides in improving public access to scholarly publications and digital data help usher in an era of open science. This week marks the 8th annual Open Access Week, when individuals and organizations around the world celebrate the value of opening up online access to the results of scholarly research. It is an opportune

9 Reasons Your Infographics Might Be Too Big

Thu, 27 Oct 2016 12:00:27 -0400

Infographics are a useful tool for communicators to share complex data and information in a quick, easy-to-read format. Infographics can be beautifully designed works of art, pulling in a reader through storytelling and visual entertainment. And like art, infographics can be large, epic works, or small treasures.

The Data Briefing: Help Predict the Future of Federal Government Data

Wed, 26 Oct 2016 13:00:55 -0400

In December, I plan to write two postings detailing a scenario analysis for the next ten years of the Federal government’s data technologies. Governments are on the cusp of amazing technological advances propelled by artificial intelligence, blockchain technologies, and the Internet of Things. Also, governments will face new challenges such as the recent global cyber

GSA launches new AI, Virtual Reality, and Authentication Programs

Wed, 26 Oct 2016 10:00:17 -0400

Today we’re launching three new initiatives powered by GSA Digital Communities that leap federal agencies ahead on some of the most innovative new capabilities becoming available to our programs — Artificial Intelligence, Virtual/Augmented Reality, and the U.S. Digital Registry. These new Communities and portal are products of inter-agency collaboration and our shared commitment pushing the

DigitalGov Readers and Subscribers: We Want to Talk to You

Tue, 25 Oct 2016 15:00:21 -0400

As you know, over the last few years DigitalGov has surfaced the innovative advancements many are making across the government space while providing a platform for learning best practices and coming together as a community. Over the course of the next few weeks, a small team from

Expert Insight on Content Strategy and Structure for Future-Ready Content

Tue, 25 Oct 2016 13:00:10 -0400

We recently interviewed Sara Wachter-Boettcher, author of Content Everywhere: Strategy and Structure for Future-Ready Content. Sara, a frequent conference speaker, runs a content strategy consultancy, and is the co-author of Design for Real Life. She has extensive experience consulting with major brands, universities, agencies, nonprofits, and others to make their content more memorable, manageable, and

Federal Cybersecurity Challenges

Tue, 25 Oct 2016 10:00:09 -0400

These days, when you turn on the news you almost always see another hack, leak, or breach putting sensitive information at risk. But we’ve been focusing on keeping federal agency information systems secure for a long time. For October’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month, the WatchBlog takes a look at federal cybersecurity challenges. What is the threat?

Changing the Knowledge Management Tides and Why it Matters: The Federal HR Wiki

Mon, 24 Oct 2016 12:00:26 -0400

Imagine this – a go-to member of your organization just retired, a furlough is approaching, and now no one knows what to do. What communications need to go out? Who is considered ‘excepted’? Can the daycare center stay open? In the absence of mind-melds, how do you make expert knowledge easily accessible to newer team

GAO to Congress: Federal Agencies Are Making a Difference Through Open Innovation

Fri, 21 Oct 2016 13:00:16 -0400

Federal agencies confront tough problems every day. In searching for solutions, agencies will want to attract different perspectives, test new products, build capacity and communities, and increase public awareness. How do they do it? The answer: open innovation. Federal agencies need to engage and collaborate with all sectors of society, a task made easier by

Announcing the Digital Acquisition Accelerator Playbook

Thu, 20 Oct 2016 11:00:41 -0400

Built on the lessons learned during the pilot phase of the Digital Acquisitions Accelerator, the accompanying playbook examines the current acquisition landscape and provides an approach to procuring custom software solutions.

The Data Briefing: Using Artificial Intelligence to Augment the Work of Frontline Government Employees

Wed, 19 Oct 2016 11:00:44 -0400

You have probably read about the recent release of the White House’s report on using artificial intelligence (AI). As with previous technologies, AI holds much promise in the areas of education, commerce, criminal justice, the environment—almost all aspects of the American public’s life. AI also poses a danger if it is not properly managed and

Trends on Tuesday: The Digital Interface — Without a Face — Is Coming Fast

Tue, 18 Oct 2016 11:00:14 -0400

The seemingly sci-fi world envisioned in the movie Her is very close to becoming our reality. Several new developments merging hardware, artificial intelligence technology, chatbots and persistent audio assistants are now available, with software developer kits to expand the platforms.

The Data Briefing: Twenty Years of USAJOBS

Wed, 12 Oct 2016 13:00:42 -0400

I recently sat down with Michelle Earley, Program Manager, to discuss the new changes for the 20th anniversary of USAJOBS. 1) What are the three big lessons learned from 20 years of building and managing USAJOBS? I think one of the greatest benefits of being an Agile program is that we are constantly learning. In

Crowdsourcing at the Law Library of Congress

Fri, 07 Oct 2016 10:00:42 -0400

The Law Library acquired a large collection from William S. Hein & Co., Inc. to make all volumes of several collections (like the Federal Register) available in open access to researchers. Preparing these files by adding metadata for easy searching takes a lot of work, so this summer we asked law students and library students from

Vendors and Government Strengthen Partnership at Technology Industry Day

Fri, 30 Sep 2016 10:00:02 -0400

On September 8, 2016, the General Services Administration (GSA) held a Technology Industry Day. We’re thrilled that more than 300 members of the technology industry in person and via the live stream were able to join us for this first step towards a closer partnership and more open lines of communication about how we can work together to transform federal technology.

NASA: Open Gov Plan 2016 Outline

Thu, 29 Sep 2016 02:00:50 -0400

Here is the outline for our 2016 Open Government Plan. Let us know what you think.

The Data Briefing: A New Perspective on the Digital Transformation of Government

Wed, 28 Sep 2016 02:00:23 -0400

One day, at an unnamed agency, the Outlook server crashed. The server stayed down for the rest of the afternoon. Deprived of email and meeting calendars, employees wandered around trying to remember what meetings they had to attend. Other employees went searching for people who they ordinarily would email. There was confusion that made people

Webinar Recap: Snaps and Stripes—Sharing Public Service Stories with Snapchat

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:00:50 -0400

Snapchat has quickly become an incredibly effective digital storytelling medium, and content creators across multiple government agencies have adopted it as an important part of their programs.

The Content Corner: Recapping Content Marketing Trends in 2016—How Have We Stacked Up?

Mon, 26 Sep 2016 14:00:24 -0400

Earlier this year, it was predicted that content marketing would become even more important due to its ability to enhance not just visibility, but also increase engagement with customers—who could, in turn, become great promoters of your content.

GSA Hosts First-Ever Technology Industry Day in Washington, D.C.

Mon, 26 Sep 2016 10:00:53 -0400

On September 8, 2016 Administrator Denise Turner Roth of the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) hosted the first-ever Technology Industry Day to provide a better understanding of GSA’s path to improve the government’s outdated technology systems. Private industry and government came together to find best ways to deliver 21st century technology to federal agencies.

Gettin' Giphy With It: NARA Shares Online Library of Animated Gifs

Fri, 23 Sep 2016 13:00:58 -0400

Have you looked in vain for quality animated GIFs from a reputable source? Come on over to the new Giphy channel from the National Archives and Records Administration.

Progressive Web Applications, Part 1: the New Pack Mule of the Internet

Tue, 20 Sep 2016 11:00:19 -0400

A mule is the hybrid offspring of a male donkey and a horse. This new species is stronger and better equipped than the species from which it comes. Overall, mules tend to be healthier, more sound, and live longer than horses. They are favored over horses in mountainous terrain because the mule has a reputation for being more surefooted than their equine cousins.

How Do You Redesign a ‘Dinosaur’? Redesigning an Intranet Site: the Beginning Stages

Mon, 19 Sep 2016 10:00:56 -0400

Many content managers in the digital world understand the irrepressible desire to improve, fix, edit, add, and move things around. Indeed, it’s our job to nurture this ongoing process to create, update, test, update again. And, repeat! But, what about those sites or pages that seem to never crawl up to the ‘high-priority’ list and

Social Security Joins The Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration

Fri, 16 Sep 2016 12:00:53 -0400

Social Security joins you and your family in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 to October 15. We know the contributions of Hispanics can be traced to before the origins of the United States with the discovery, exploration, and naming of many places in our nation, such as state names like California,

No Longer an Idea of the Future, Artificial Intelligence Is Here and You Are Probably Already Using It

Thu, 15 Sep 2016 11:00:12 -0400

It might surprise some of you to know that artificial intelligence (AI) is already in use and a routine part of our daily lives, but we leverage this technology when we use our smartphones or other devices to ask Apple’s Siri, Microsoft’s Cortana, Google Now, or Amazon’s Alexa a question to get the facts or data we

Kanban for Government

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 13:00:58 -0400

Some months ago, 18F started playing with kanban as a way to manage and improve our processes. (It turns out that “DO ALL THE THINGS!” was maybe not the best motto.) Kanban is a methodology that helps you to remove inefficiencies and reduce waste by visualizing workflow. It’s also used to balance capacity and demand

Webinar Recap: A Look At Google’s Media Tool and Platform Offerings

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 11:00:15 -0400

Suddenly, digital video is everywhere on your social timelines. As a government storyteller, you may be overwhelmed about all the tools available and all of the features each publishing platform has to offer.

DNSSEC vs. Elastic Load Balancers: the Zone Apex Problem

Mon, 12 Sep 2016 13:00:09 -0400

This is the final post in the 5-part series, The Right Tools for the Job: Re-Hosting DigitalGov Search to a Dynamic Infrastructure Environment. Federal websites are required to implement DNSSEC, which relies on knowing exactly what server is responding to a request. In Amazon Web Services (AWS), the problem of unreliable servers is solved by

The Content Corner: Using Social Media to Promote, Enhance Preparedness for the Public We Serve

Mon, 12 Sep 2016 10:00:18 -0400

September is National Preparedness Month. FEMA’s Ready.gov is encouraging everyone to plan how they would stay safe and communicate during disasters that can affect their communities. Additionally, Ready.gov is encouraging full participation in America’s PrepareAthon! and the national day of action, National PrepareAthon! Day, which culminates National Preparedness Month on September 30.

DATA Act Prototype: Simplicity Is Key

Fri, 09 Sep 2016 11:00:54 -0400

Last week we wrote about how we diffuse knowledge through shared interests and sharing best practices on the Micro-purchase Platform. This week, we’ll focus on some of the lessons learned during the (completed) DATA Act prototype. Importantly, though that project has finished, this post is not meant to be a full retrospective

Agency Mobile Resources at the Ready Following OMB Memo

Fri, 09 Sep 2016 01:00:59 -0400

Note: This is a guest blog post by Amando E. Gavino, Jr., Director, Office of Network Services, ITS/FAS/GSA. He is responsible for a portfolio of telecommunication acquisition solutions that provide government agencies the ability to meet their diverse set of telecommunication requirements. Acquisition solutions include Networx, Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions – EIS (the future replacement for

Let’s Encrypt Those CNAMES, Shall We?

Wed, 07 Sep 2016 11:00:56 -0400

This is post 4 in the 5-part series, The Right Tools for the Job: Re-Hosting DigitalGov Search to a Dynamic Infrastructure Environment. This post references the previous posts frequently, so please read those before reading this one if you haven’t done so already. In addition to the DNS challenges created by offering “masked” domains such

A Domain by Any Other Name: CNAMES, Wildcard Records and Another Level of Indirection

Tue, 06 Sep 2016 13:00:05 -0400

This is post 3 in the 5-part series The Right Tools for the Job: Re-Hosting DigitalGov Search to a Dynamic Infrastructure Environment. “All problems in computer science can be solved by another level of indirection, except of course for the problem of too many indirections.” – David Wheeler The simplest of our four requirements was

Quality, Speed, and Lower Costs: Yes, You Can Have It All

Fri, 02 Sep 2016 10:00:42 -0400

This is post 2 in the 5-part series The Right Tools for the Job: Re-Hosting DigitalGov Search to a Dynamic Infrastructure Environment. The last major infrastructure upgrade that DigitalGov Search had was in 2010. Not only has technology evolved significantly since then, but so have business models for right-sizing costs. Moving to Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Emma: Friendly Presence and Innovative USCIS Resource Available 24/7

Thu, 01 Sep 2016 10:00:40 -0400

We are working hard to serve you and continue to make improvements to Emma, our Spanish-speaking Interactive Virtual Assistant. Help us improve Emma’s knowledge by continuing to ask your immigration-related questions on USCIS.gov/es from any device. This blog will help you understand a little bit more about how Emma works and how you can help

Sign up for the Technology Industry Day

Wed, 31 Aug 2016 13:00:45 -0400

On September 8, 2016, the General Services Administration (GSA) is hosting its very first Technology Industry Day. Sign up to hear about how GSA is transforming technology in the federal government, see demos of products and solutions developed by technologists and, last but not least, provide feedback on how we can work better with industry.

Smithsonian Learning Lab: Designing for the Classroom

Mon, 29 Aug 2016 10:00:53 -0400

The Smithsonian’s mission statement is wonderfully simple: “The increase and diffusion of knowledge.” The “increasing” is arguably the straightforward part – the Smithsonian has amassed a collection of over 138 million objects and specimens, and the Institution’s curators and scientists obsessively add to the world’s knowledge base, publishing papers, creating exhibitions, and sharing their expertise.

Rebooting the Social Media Strategy for the National Archives

Fri, 26 Aug 2016 10:00:19 -0400

In six years, you can get a lot done! If you are the International Space Station, you could have orbited the earth 35,040 times. If you are Apple, you could have released 10 new iPhones. If you are the National Archives, you have gone from zero social media accounts to over 100! It’s been six

How Creating On-The-Fly Digital Content Can Fill an Immediate Audience Need

Thu, 25 Aug 2016 11:00:32 -0400

When some U.S. athletes at this month’s Olympic Games started showing up at their events with dark red circles on their torsos, sports commentators and the media hungrily sought answers to what the marks could be. In less than a day after the spots were…spotted, the story of the mysterious circles was becoming clearer: they

What Happens When the Whole Team Joins User Interviews

Mon, 22 Aug 2016 14:00:00 -0400

The CALC team is an agile team of four — six if you count the Scrummaster and the Product Owner — building a simple means to load price data into the original CALC tool. They’re an Agile team, which means everybody pitches in on everything to some degree, and here, in their own words, is

Making Modernizations and Migrations Successful

Fri, 19 Aug 2016 12:25:31 -0400

Summary: Today, we’re launching the M3 Framework to provide agencies with leading best practices for mission-support function modernizations and migrations. The government’s internal operations have a powerful impact on service to its citizens, and this Administration has made transformation of management practices within the Federal Government a key priority. By sharing and streamlining mission support services

The Right Tools for the Job: Re-Hosting DigitalGov Search to a Dynamic Infrastructure Environment

Thu, 18 Aug 2016 10:00:29 -0400

This is the first post of a 5-part series. DigitalGov Search is a commercial-grade search engine provided as a shared-service by the United States General Services Administration. We power about 2,300 search configurations for hundreds of federal, state, and local government agencies. Using our platform, agencies can easily configure a search experience for the public that

The Data Briefing: DevOps and Containers and Why They Are Important to Transforming Federal Government IT

Wed, 17 Aug 2016 13:00:11 -0400

You may have heard about “DevOps” in the news or when meeting with IT professionals. What exactly is DevOps and what, if any, connection does it have with agile? Also, what do “containers” have to do with all of this? In this week’s column, I will introduce DevOps and a related technology: containers. Some DevOps

Celebrating the 18th Anniversary of the Section 508 Rehabilitation Act

Mon, 15 Aug 2016 11:00:03 -0400

August 8, 2016, marks the 18th anniversary of the amendment to the Section 508 Rehabilitation Act of 1973. To recognize the importance of IT accessibility, we wanted to highlight some agency initiatives to improve accessibility across the federal landscape.

Did We Do a Good Job? The Answer Is in Customers’ Business Outcomes

Fri, 12 Aug 2016 10:00:24 -0400

Earlier this week, I shared with my colleagues at EXIM the results of our 2016 export credit insurance customer survey. This is the third consecutive year that our largest customer segment has been asked to share their feedback with us.

Live Streamed Demos for Exponential Transparency and Information Sharing

Tue, 09 Aug 2016 10:00:36 -0400

This spring, the eRegulations Notice & Comment team began building out a new feature set for the platform — adding the ability for agencies with proposed regulations to show the public more precisely the changes being proposed and allow agencies to receive more granular, contextual, and better-organized comments.

The People’s Code

Tue, 09 Aug 2016 01:00:47 -0400

Summary: Today, we’re releasing the Federal Source Code policy to support improved access to custom software code developed by or for the Federal Government. “If we can reconceive of our government so that the interactions and the interplay between private sector, nonprofits, and government are opened up, and we use technology, data, social media in order

The Content Corner: On-The-Fly Content Strategies (Round-offs, Back Handsprings, & Double Twisting Layouts Not Required)

Mon, 08 Aug 2016 10:00:55 -0400

As effective marketers and communicators, we are constantly seeking new and improved ways to reach our audience or customer base. These days, our “online lives” intersect with every activity we are involved in, so timeliness is essential. With fresh ideas and engaging, perhaps interactive, content, we can literally make a difference in the lives of our

That Six-Letter Word: Change

Thu, 04 Aug 2016 11:00:58 -0400

One of the biggest challenges in implementing a new technology or process is change. Change creates a multitude of feelings; for some it is apprehension and uncertainty, while for others it is excitement and acceptance. Change management is defined as “a systematic approach to dealing with change, both from the perspective of an organization and

Promoting the Use of Green IT

Wed, 03 Aug 2016 13:00:55 -0400

Summary: We’re taking action to accelerate efforts to increase the efficiency of Federal data centers, reduce costs, and improve the government’s overall IT security posture. Today, the Administration is taking action to accelerate efforts to increase the efficiency of Federal data centers, reduce costs, and improve the overall information technology (IT) security posture of the Federal

Managing Federal Information as a Strategic Resource

Wed, 27 Jul 2016 15:00:01 -0400

Summary: Today, OMB is releasing an update to Circular A-130, the Federal Government’s governing document for the management of Federal information resources. Today the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is releasing an update to the Federal Government’s governing document for the management of Federal information resources: Circular A-130, Managing Information as a Strategic Resource.

Summer Health and Safety: A New Resource Brought to You by CDC and NIH

Tue, 26 Jul 2016 13:00:44 -0400

We have previously written about microsites in the federal government. A microsite is a small collection of web pages—a subset of an organization’s full website. Partners can embed microsites that present curated information on a specific topic or campaign directly within their own websites. And perhaps best of all, microsites that are API-enabled are maintained and updated

The Content Corner: Quality Over Quantity—a Case for Long-Form Content

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 15:00:38 -0400

Content can be categorized in many ways. While breaking down your website analytics, pay a bit of extra attention to the difference between your short- and long-form content; you may find some interesting discoveries. Let’s first define the two terms: Short – Content that is generally created quickly, and consumed just as fast; e.g., tweets,

DARPA: A Case Study in Open Innovation

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 12:00:25 -0400

You may not know it, but the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, has changed your life. There’s the Internet, for starters. And if that isn’t enough, the agency also has played a pivotal role in shaping GPS, stealth aircraft and drone technology. In fact, ever since its creation under President Eisenhower, DARPA has

The FirstNet Network: Smart Response for Smart Cities

Fri, 22 Jul 2016 10:00:29 -0400

“Smart City” is an emerging term to describe how a community – large or small – uses connected technology and/or other data sets to influence and improve the delivery of services to the private and public sectors. By integrating data and connectivity into their daily operations, communities can automate many functions to create efficiencies and

95%: Describing the National Archives’ Holdings

Wed, 20 Jul 2016 01:00:32 -0400

The National Archives Catalog has reached a milestone: we now have 95% of our holdings completely described at the series level in our online catalog. This is a monumental achievement. Why? Because the National Archives holds over 14 billion pages of records, and we are adding hundreds of millions of pages to that total every

Joining Forces with BusinessUSA to Better Serve Our Nation’s Businesses

Tue, 19 Jul 2016 02:00:33 -0400

Four years ago, BusinessUSA launched with a mission to revolutionize the way government provides services to small businesses and exporters. Using technology to erase bureaucratic boundaries, BusinessUSA streamlined the way businesses find and get what they need from government. This “no wrong door” approach combined resources from over 800 websites and created a single point

Information Architecture vs Content Strategy—and Why YOU Need Both

Mon, 18 Jul 2016 02:16:19 -0400

The idea of portable content is nothing new. Content needs to be mobile ready, responsive, and readily consumed by tools such as the Internet of Things (IoT)—a proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing them to send and receive data. Developers need to stop creating fixed, single-purpose content and

Where Content and Marketing Meet: An email Case Study

Fri, 15 Jul 2016 10:00:28 -0400

Content marketing is everywhere and you’re hearing more about it every day—but how do you do it well? While content marketing can take many forms (articles, infographics, videos, and more), it shares a common purpose: providing useful content to attract new customers to your product or service. At USAGov, customized email messages to our subscribers

Enhancing our Nation’s Cybersecurity

Thu, 14 Jul 2016 14:00:04 -0400

The mission of U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)’s Integrated Technology Services (ITS) is to deliver best value technology solutions to the government and the American people, and one of the most critically important capabilities that our nation currently needs is strengthened cybersecurity. We have been working with numerous other federal agencies to ensure that the

Introducing the Digital Audio/Video Community of Practice

Fri, 08 Jul 2016 01:30:48 -0400

Tech giants have changed the world of broadcast forever. In a little more than a year, video on Facebook went from being a seldomly seen media type on a user’s timeline to a strategic priority for Mark Zuckerberg. The platform now serves over 8 billion video views a day and Facebook continues to roll out improvements

The Data Briefing: I, For One, Welcome Our New Chatbot Blockchain Digital Autonomous Organizations

Wed, 06 Jul 2016 11:00:56 -0400

It is at the intersections of fields where you find the most fascinating and innovative concepts. Recently, a conference on “Open Human Resources and the Cognitive Era” explored the use of chatbots and blockchain technologies in human resources. Human Resources (HR) is quietly undergoing a revolution as many HR practitioners are transforming HR by using

Twitter’s Evolution and What It Means for Your Government Account

Thu, 30 Jun 2016 11:00:08 -0400

Twitter has come a long way. In ten years of evolution, we’ve seen Twitter go from a simple text messaging service to a versatile platform, which in the words of Twitter, provides a “rich canvas for creative expression featuring photos, videos, hashtags, Vines, and more.” Now Twitter is offering additional enhancements to their service to

The Data Briefing: Innovating Processes the Lean and Agile Way

Wed, 29 Jun 2016 11:00:41 -0400

In today’s world of big data, cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), and the rise of smarter artificial intelligence (AI) applications, processes have become even more vital.

Using Plain Language to Bridge the Gap Between Government and Industry

Thu, 23 Jun 2016 13:30:02 -0400

Much of our work with government partners to deliver better digital services has resulted in full websites, applications, and embarking on large-scale transformation efforts. In addition to those types of projects, we also work on shorter, faster, smaller-scale projects designed to show our partners different points of view and different techniques to approach their most

The Data Briefing: NASA’s New Big Data Strategy

Wed, 22 Jun 2016 11:00:33 -0400

Few other federal agencies deal with as much data as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Big science creates big data, and NASA manages many of the biggest science projects in world history. Even in the early days of NASA’s history, NASA pioneered new ways to create and store data. So, in the world

Trends on Tuesday: Key Trends for Government from Mary Meeker’s 2016 Internet Trends

Tue, 21 Jun 2016 12:00:54 -0400

Internet strategist Mary Meeker delivered her 2016 Internet Trends report this month, and there are several key takeaways for government agencies to consider and continue tracking as our connected world continues to evolve: Mobile phone adoption and Internet growth is meeting saturation. Incremental global growth will continue (especially in India, which she called out for

Exciting Additions to Analytics.usa.gov

Fri, 17 Jun 2016 12:30:45 -0400

We’ve expanded analytics.usa.gov to include 15(!) more agency-specific dashboard pages. We now offer agency-specific analytics data pages for a total of 25 major federal agencies, and each one is accessible from the dropdown menu at the top of the site.

Modernizing Federal IT Part 5: Modernizing Software Architecture

Thu, 16 Jun 2016 14:00:31 -0400

This is the fifth in a series describing how the Social Security Administration is working towards a more modern IT infrastructure. You can find part 1 here, part 2 here, part 3 here and part 4 here. In the next three posts we will consider the problem of modernizing old legacy software. In this post we will start a

The Great Pinterest Experiment: One Year In

Mon, 13 Jun 2016 14:00:49 -0400

Last summer, Kids.Gov revamped its presence on Pinterest in an attempt to find new ways to connect with its followers. The Marketing Team set out to learn more about our audiences and the kind of content they like. Despite being a difficult platform to navigate, we set lofty goals for ourselves and developed a timely

Taking an Agile Approach to Content

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 02:00:28 -0400

So, you’ve recently joined an agile team — congratulations! Here at 18F, we work in an agile way — in other words, we base our designs on user needs, conduct usability testing, iterate quickly, and release MVPs (minimum viable products) rather than highly finalized releases. We take an agile approach to content too. While there’s

Welcome to the New DHS.gov

Thu, 09 Jun 2016 02:00:26 -0400

Today, I am happy to announce the newly optimized DHS.gov website. Over the past year, DHS has worked behind the scenes to update and modernize our flagship website, making it faster and easier to use. Some of the specific differences you’ll see are: Compatibility for both desktop computers and mobile devices (phones and tablets) Cleaner,

Why Switching to HTTPS Will Make Your Analytics Better

Mon, 06 Jun 2016 11:00:14 -0400

Federal agencies are required to make all federal websites accessible through a secure, HTTPS-only connection by the end of the 2016 calendar year. What you might not have known is that the switch to HTTPS will improve your ability to track which sites are directing web traffic to yours. Recently, a federal colleague reached out

GSA Introduces New Web-Based Leasing Tool

Thu, 02 Jun 2016 12:00:21 -0400

Recently, Regional Administrator Sara Manzano-Díaz of the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) introduced a web-based leasing tool, the Automated Advanced Acquisition Program (AAAP), to 60 lessors and/or brokers at the Dow Building in Philadelphia. The AAAP tool was designed to consolidate and streamline the leasing process, making for a more efficient, transparent process that also

The User-Centered Redesign of IdentityTheft.gov

Wed, 01 Jun 2016 14:30:14 -0400

I first came across the redesigned IdentityTheft.gov on Reddit, of all places. Someone had posted a link to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) newly redesigned site and wrote: I hope this never happens to any of you as the entire thing can be really stressful. The identitytheft.gov website is a true breath of fresh air…You

The Content Corner: Is Scheduling Social Media Posts Truly Social?

Mon, 23 May 2016 11:10:49 -0400

Good communicators are always…well…evaluating the way they communicate. As we think of the “customer experience,” it is key to constantly consider your methods for engaging with your audience. Just as the platforms themselves continue to change to keep their audience, continuing to refine our ways of sending messages will assure that you don’t get left

Kids.Gov Reenvisioned

Mon, 23 May 2016 10:00:16 -0400

At USAGov, we always put our customers first. In the wake of our rebranding efforts, our desire to create a positive user experience across the organization has pushed us to turn a scrutinous eye toward Kids.gov; a site focused on providing information and resources to parents, teachers, and kids.

Improving Internal Communications: Best Practices

Fri, 20 May 2016 10:00:55 -0400

Customers are not the only group with whom we need to effectively communicate as we work to improve our quality of service. Effective communication between employees and leadership is critical to improving the customer experience. Front line employees interact with the public on a regular basis, and if employees do not have the information they

Customer Experience Performance Metrics: Two Sides to Every Story

Mon, 16 May 2016 10:00:06 -0400

Performance metrics, targets and public reporting are not new in government; however, customer-oriented metrics have been underutilized and under-reported publicly for a long time. Today, as the principles of customer experience as a management discipline gain momentum across the federal government, there is an opportunity to use data to tell more of the story where

FDA’s “The Real Cost”: A Tumblr Success Story

Fri, 13 May 2016 10:00:25 -0400

FDA’s “The Real Cost” campaign aims to be edgy, just like its teen audience. Last month, the campaign won the 2016 Shorty Award for the Best Overall Tumblr Presence. “The Real Cost” educates youth ages 12 to 17 about the harmful effects of tobacco use.

Accessible Workplace Technology: Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Tue, 10 May 2016 10:00:28 -0400

Last week, I had a brush with a bona fide music legend — the great Stevie Wonder. Was I starstruck? Of course. I’ve long admired his musical accomplishments and advocacy for people with disabilities. His appearance at the Grammy Awards in February highlighted once again the need to improve accessible technology, particularly in the workplace.

Help Customer Experience Drive Change at Your Agency

Tue, 10 May 2016 04:28:03 -0400

With the recent launch of the Core Federal Services Council—which seeks to improve the customer experience for core federal programs by ensuring use of customer feedback data and identifying strategies—building on the Feedback USA pilot, the Federal Front Door and other customer experience initiatives, 2016 may in fact be the Year of the Customer. But,

Delivering the Next Generation of Digital Government

Wed, 04 May 2016 11:10:23 -0400

Today we take another step forward helping government develop the technology that the public and taxpayers deserve. I’m pleased to announce the creation of GSA’s third service, the Technology Transformation Service; the launchpad to set us up for the next big expedition for the federal government in technology.

Redesigning We the People

Mon, 02 May 2016 11:32:09 -0400

Summary: Improving the way you engage with the White House through our online petitions platform In July 2015, we announced a big change in the way we would answer petitions on We the People. We committed to responding to you within a 60-day timeframe, whenever possible. We assembled a team of people dedicated to getting your policy questions and

Agile Transformation at Census

Thu, 28 Apr 2016 11:30:33 -0400

The agile transformation at the Census Bureau started several years ago after GAO recommended Census implement a standard Systems Development Lifecycle (SDLC).

Recap: How to Overcome Cultural Resistance to Agile in Government

Fri, 22 Apr 2016 10:00:11 -0400

Armed with the knowledge that ‘most studies suggest that losses are twice as powerful, psychologically, as gains,’ federal change agents can better prepare for possible cultural resistance as they begin to implement agile practices at their agencies. There are a variety of resistant-to-change personas (change is painful for most of us, but we dislike it

The Teams, They Are a Changin’

Tue, 19 Apr 2016 10:00:06 -0400

Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.—Agile Manifesto My team has experienced a lot of change in the past few weeks. We were a team of seven, and now we’ve been reduced to two. We’re off-boarding two developers, a content specialist, and the product owner, and we’re onboarding a new content

How Gamification Can Break Down Bureaucracy and Address Real World Problems

Fri, 15 Apr 2016 10:00:06 -0400

The world’s toughest challenges require out-of-the-box thinking. But how can agencies facilitate intentional, structured collaboration that leads to this thinking? Gamification. To address issues ranging from maritime piracy to Naval energy use to 3D printing, the Navy uses gamification via MMOWGLI, the Massive Multiplayer Online Wargame Leveraging the Internet. MMOWGLI is an online gaming platform that

The USAGov Bilingual Style Guide Is Now Online!

Thu, 14 Apr 2016 10:00:12 -0400

About a year and a half ago, the Federal Citizen Information Center—today called USAGov—embarked on a very ambitious task: integrating our content operations. We blurred lines that defined silos and adopted a bilingual content approach to offer a more consistent experience, regardless of language preference or point of access to our information. See more about

How Agile’s Being Done in Government

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 11:30:44 -0400

The concepts of agile may not be new, but there is a renewed push across government to embrace this customer-feedback driven methodology, in everything from software development to project management. A government community has even sprung up to help feds learn from one another what it takes to incorporate agile into more efficient and effective

Transcreation: Why Do We Need It?

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 10:00:14 -0400

Transcreation is a relatively new term that blends the words translation and creation. In a nutshell, transcreation involves taking a concept in one language and completely recreating it in another language. A successfully transcreated message (either written or visual) evokes the same emotions and carries the same implications in the target language as it does

How to Merge Two Facebook Pages

Thu, 07 Apr 2016 10:00:26 -0400

In the next couple of years as new social media platforms emerge and organizations open more accounts, when do you make the decision to shut an account down? When resources are limited, we must analyze the effectiveness of our social media programs and put our time and effort into the accounts that best serve our

Remixing Content: Shining Sunlight on the SunShot Initiative’s Solar Energy R&D Project Map

Wed, 06 Apr 2016 10:00:45 -0400

With more than 400 projects in their portfolio, it can be difficult for the Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative to adequately convey the scope of the office’s work. The team can list their projects, organize them by program area, and write blog posts about them, but none of that has the same impact as seeing

DigitalGov Podcast: Behind the Scenes of the Social and Behavioral Science Team

Mon, 04 Apr 2016 10:00:15 -0400

The Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST) uses theories, research, and methods from the social and behavioral sciences to address and solve challenges faced by the public.

Creating a Culture of Engagement – Webinar Recap

Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:00:57 -0400

Employee engagement, evidenced by displays of dedication, persistence, effort and overall attachment to organization and mission, is a key factor in business success, but it can be a struggle for government organizations. Organizational leaders seeking to cultivate a culture of engagement need tangible examples of how to successfully move the needle in a positive direction.

The Content Corner: Feeding the Beast with Agile Content Development

Mon, 14 Mar 2016 10:59:54 -0400

I feel as though I have ignored the beast in the room lately, and since I began my tenure on The Content Corner introducing that concept, I felt I needed to wrestle with it one last time before I depart. Previously, I discussed the concept of pair writing. Today I want to investigate how another software

Leveraging American Ingenuity through Reusable and Open Source Software

Thu, 10 Mar 2016 01:29:38 -0400

Summary: Today, we’re releasing for public comment a draft policy to support improved access to custom software code developed for the Federal Government. America has long been a nation of innovators. American scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs invented the microchip, created the Internet, invented the smartphone, started the revolution in biotechnology, and sent astronauts to the

Informing the Future of the Federal Front Door

Tue, 01 Mar 2016 11:10:06 -0400

In our last post, we introduced the Federal Front Door project and briefly described a six-week discovery phase, in which we set out to better understand how the general public feels about and interacts with the federal government, so that we can design and build products that improve people’s experience across government agencies. We think

Why People Contribute to Federal Tech Projects (And How You Can Provide a Good Experience)

Thu, 14 Jan 2016 10:00:56 -0400

Author’s note: Anyone can contribute to the development of the Open Opportunities platform via the project’s GitHub repository. The Open Opportunities program itself is only open to federal employees. Open, agile software development projects can improve government initiatives. As discussed in last week’s article on agile projects in government, the Open Opportunities platform has benefited

Trends on Tuesday: 10 Mobile, Government and Tech Trends for 2016

Tue, 12 Jan 2016 11:00:37 -0400

As we move into 2016, here are 10 trends I foresee flourishing around mobile, technology and government: The mobile-majority tipping point in government. Many agencies are already past this point, but as a whole, government websites are still desktop-majority, with 66% of people accessing federal websites via desktop and 34% on mobile. In 2016, the double-digit mobile

CX Community—Year One

Wed, 30 Dec 2015 10:00:47 -0400

Customer experience, or CX, is everywhere these days. If you’re wondering how customer experience differs from customer service, customer service usually involves a single interaction, such as a phone call to your cable company, while the customer experience encompasses the entire relationship.

After the Survey: Turning Customer Feedback into Action

Tue, 22 Dec 2015 10:00:42 -0400

Doing business with any U.S. government agency can be a daunting task. For example, in the case of customers new to EXIM Bank, there are application forms to complete, rules to understand, processes to navigate and conditions that have to be met in order to work with our agency.

Once Upon a FOIA Request: How You Can Open Public Records

Fri, 18 Dec 2015 03:14:27 -0400

Like many of you, we watched with great interest this week when a citizen submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) asking them to release to the public Wu-Tang Clan’s album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. While official sources explain that the desired outcome is not possible

Government Customer Service Update—Webinar Recap

Mon, 14 Dec 2015 13:00:28 -0400

When the public comes to the federal government for information and services, they should receive an optimal customer experience. The Customer Service CAP goal spells out specific strategies to help us achieve this.

The Content Corner: Is Pair Writing Right for You?

Mon, 14 Dec 2015 10:00:35 -0400

Fresh from last week’s article about workflows and their importance in the content creation process, I stumbled upon a new twist in content production known as pair writing. Many of you familiar with agile methodologies or software programming in general should know the term pair programming. Pair writing hopes to take some of the same

Connecting with the Social and Behavioral Sciences Team

Wed, 09 Dec 2015 01:40:55 -0400

The new Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST) aims to make government programs more effective and efficient. Amira Choueiki from the SBST joined us to explain what the SBST does, and to discuss some of the projects they’ve worked on.

The EPA’s New Environmental Digital Services Marketplace

Mon, 07 Dec 2015 13:29:31 -0400

Over the past year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has undertaken a broad initiative to transform the way it delivers digital services. We’ve been working hand-in-hand with the EPA to make this transformation a success by supporting such programs as eManifest. Working with 18F

CX Data in Action Series: Case Study #1

Mon, 07 Dec 2015 11:10:18 -0400

It’s not new that agencies are inundated with data, but what data should you collect to improve your agency’s programs and enhance the customer experience? The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefit Security Administration’s (EBSA) has been perfecting their process to collect actionable data for the past 14 years.

The Content Corner: Work Smarter with Workflows

Mon, 07 Dec 2015 10:00:55 -0400

I noticed recently that I have spent a decent amount of time discussing or referencing content workflow, but I haven’t spent much time on how to actually create or use workflows. Developing content workflows can be a fairly painless process that can make your regular content creation a much smoother and efficient process. Content workflows

OPM Wants to Hear from You by December 9

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 13:00:16 -0400

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is looking for agency subject matter experts (SMEs) to participate in an occupational study of the Public Affairs Series 1035. OPM is accepting SME submissions until Wednesday, December 9th. The study will review the “current classification and qualification standards for public affairs work” and allow OPM to make any revisions

Government Product Managers Play a Key Role in UX

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 11:00:19 -0400

Government product managers sit at the intersection of three circles—business, design and technology. We play a key role in user experience (UX), because we are tasked with understanding users to build a product that is desirable and viable. This product could be a paper or online form, a website or a mobile app. Product management

New Playbook Details What It’s Like to Work with 18F Delivery

Fri, 20 Nov 2015 01:00:26 -0400

If you or your agency have thought about working with 18F but are unsure of how we work with our partners, we have a new set of guidelines to help you out. The 18F Delivery Partner Playbook is specifically targeted at federal offices interested in working with 18F to build digital services. The playbook is

GSA.gov Refreshed with Eye Toward Mobile Users

Tue, 17 Nov 2015 14:59:57 -0400

GSA unveiled a refreshed GSA.gov website yesterday with a more crisp design layout, improved usability, and features geared more toward mobile users. Increasingly, website traffic is coming from mobile users. With this in mind, GSA unveiled a newly refreshed GSA.gov website on Nov. 16. “Our ultimate goal for the refresh

Modernizing Federal Cybersecurity

Mon, 02 Nov 2015 13:00:34 -0400

Summary: Today, the Administration directed a series of actions to continue strengthening Federal cybersecurity & modernizing the government’s technology infrastructure. Strengthening the cybersecurity of Federal networks, systems, and data is one of the most important challenges we face as a Nation. Every day, public and private sector leaders—my team included—are directing significant resources to address

DigitalGov Summit Recap: Innovation Through Customer Experience

Fri, 30 Oct 2015 11:10:21 -0400

A panel discussion at the 2015 DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit delved into customer experience (CX) work at three agencies with diverse missions.

Empowering the Voice of Citizens at Core of GSA Open Government

Thu, 29 Oct 2015 10:19:09 -0400

We are proud to announce our commitment to the third U.S. National Action Plan for Open Government, released this week at the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit in Mexico City, Mexico,

GSA Open Government Builds Solutions and Gives Voice to Citizens

Thu, 29 Oct 2015 10:16:01 -0400

Our work at the General Services Administration encompass many of the pillars of Open Government, from giving a greater voice to citizens to through Public Participation innovations like Challenge.gov to making the

#NIHDigital Summit: Optimizing Digital to Reach Patients, Scientists, Clinicians and the Public

Mon, 26 Oct 2015 13:00:14 -0400

On October 19th, NIH brought together nearly 1,500 digital and health experts in person and via webcast. The event featured two keynote speakers and panels that showcased the unique perspectives of patients and caregivers, health

Modernizing Federal Information Policy

Wed, 21 Oct 2015 14:51:33 -0400

Today, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is proposing for the first time in fifteen years revisions to the Federal Government’s governing document establishing policies for the management of Federal information resources: Circular A-130, Managing Information as a Strategic Resource.

The White House, Back To The Future Day, and the Road to Innovation

Wed, 21 Oct 2015 09:47:15 -0400

The White House is marking Back to the Future Day with a series of conversations with innovators across the country. Follow along here.

National Customer Service Week Is Over, but Our Work Is Not!

Tue, 20 Oct 2015 10:00:56 -0400

Get your customer personas right, and you will improve the customer experience (CX) for the rest of your audience. That’s advice Rick Parrish from Forrester Research gave in response to an audience question during the September 29 DigitalGov University webinar on the state of CX in the federal government. Your key customers are those that are most important to the organization, and often most

Open Source Micro-Purchasing: An Experiment in Federal Acquisition

Fri, 16 Oct 2015 13:36:47 -0400

18F is an open-source team. We currently have hundreds of publicly available repositories, with dozens under active development. We’ve had numerous contributions from colleagues within government, and contributions from members of the public. But in the next few weeks, we are going to run an experiment: we want to contract for contributions. And we want

Bringing Water Protection into the Modern Age

Thu, 01 Oct 2015 13:55:10 -0400

Information technology is everywhere. How we communicate, and how we share with one another has gone digital, saving paper, time, money, and making it easier to get information faster and more reliably. Forty-three years ago, when the Clean Water Act was enacted, things moved a little slower. But the significance and impact of this important

How OSTP Crowdsourced A Crowdsourcing Toolkit

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 10:18:38 -0400

To promote crowdsourcing, one effective tool is, well, crowdsourcing. Today, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Federal Community of Practice for Crowdsourcing and Citizen Science (CCS) unveiled the Citizen Science and Crowdsourcing Toolkit. The toolkit contains information, resources, and best practices federal agencies can use to harness the power

Understanding Your Customer

Tue, 22 Sep 2015 10:00:26 -0400

How well do you know your customers? There’s a new guide out from the Excellence In Government (EIG) Fellows Program to help you do just that. Led by the Partnership for Public Service, EIG is a federal government initiative to train future leaders. This year, three hundred federal employees took the EIG journey to learn

How a Two-Day Sprint Moved an Agency Twenty Years Forward

Mon, 21 Sep 2015 10:00:49 -0400

At 18F Consulting, we experiment with ways to empower agencies to build cost-efficient, excellent digital solutions. Recently we partnered with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) to run a two day “Design/Dev Agile Sprint.” Background: Investigators in Wage and Hour Division The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is responsible for

Using Customer Feedback to Improve HealthCare.gov

Thu, 17 Sep 2015 11:10:00 -0400

We recently polled the Customer Experience Community of Practice (CX-COP) to discover what kinds of training people needed most to improve customer experience at their agency.

How Will You Celebrate Customer Service Week?

Fri, 11 Sep 2015 11:00:45 -0400

In 1992, Congress passed Public Law No: 102-481, which proclaimed the first full week in October as National Customer Service Week.

Announcing the Agile BPA Awards: A Conversation About the Process

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 11:10:59 -0400

In January, 18F Consulting announced a new kind of process for vendors to compete for software acquisition contracts. The Agile Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) process would be open to existing vendors on Schedule 70, and require vendors to submit a working prototype based on a public dataset—and then show their work in a publicly available

HUD’s Switchboard Puts Customer Experience and Customer Service Together

Thu, 27 Aug 2015 10:00:16 -0400

Customer experience is about making sure needs are met. It’s certainly not a new concept for business; every bookstore has a customer service section. Government agencies are slightly different though. Often people are driven to public services by need or regulation, not choice. Government traditionally didn’t need to court positive attention. The increasing prominence of

National Customer Service Week: Coming Soon!

Mon, 24 Aug 2015 10:00:40 -0400

Help us celebrate the Everyday Heroes in our agencies during Customer Service Week, October 5-9, 2015. In 1992, Congress passed Public Law No: 102-481, which proclaimed the first full week in October as National Customer Service Week. The Principles and Practices Subgroup of the Customer Service Cross Agency Priority (CAP) Goal has started work on

Agile Strategy Implementation

Fri, 21 Aug 2015 11:17:27 -0400

The Challenge Much like GSA experienced three years ago, the Management Information Systems Office (MISO) organization at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had a vision, a short deadline, and the need to change and change fast. MISO is responsible for developing, maintaining, and managing a variety of enterprise business systems across the CDC.

Federal Student Aid Customer Experience Journey: A Recap

Fri, 14 Aug 2015 10:00:11 -0400

Customer Experience (CX) deserves a voice at an agency’s senior levels. Putting CX

New Kid in Town: The Customer Experience Community

Fri, 31 Jul 2015 10:00:20 -0400

Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Goals prioritize activities that all agencies must tackle each year. An important CAP Goal for 2015 addresses customer service and compels federal agencies to improve the quality of service the public receives from the federal government.

DigitalGov Summit Recap: How “We, the Techies” Can Effect Change

Wed, 22 Jul 2015 11:00:27 -0400

Who do you need to bring to the table to make a better world? In May, Megan Smith, Chief Technology Officer of the United States, delivered the keynote address at the 2015 DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit. She encouraged attendees to find ways of unlocking potential through collaborations from both within and outside of government. “We

DigitalGov Podcast: Leaders Come and Go, But Your Customers Will Remain

Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:00:20 -0400

To provide great customer service, bring your agency’s customers to the table. This is one of many insights recently offered by Stephanie Thum, Vice President of Customer Experience at the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

2015 Customer Service Trends: a Mid-Year Update

Wed, 08 Jul 2015 10:00:36 -0400

Earlier this year, we published 15 Government Customer Service Trends for 2015. We’re halfway through the year now—how are these trends holding up? 1. Centralized Customer Offices A few agencies have created centralized customer offices, while others question the need for a single organization that focuses on the customer. As the public’s overall satisfaction with

HTTPS For All

Mon, 15 Jun 2015 10:00:32 -0400

With the release of a new dashboard to measure best Web practices in the federal government and the establishment of a government-wide HTTPS Only Standard, the time to make the switch to HTTPS has arrived. Agencies have until December 31, 2016, to make the switch. The move to HTTPS is not only happening in government;

DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit: Reflections from Our Livestream Host, and Full Recording Now Available!

Fri, 12 Jun 2015 13:30:22 -0400

The second annual DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit was held at GSA headquarters in Washington, DC on May 21, 2015.

How Governance Supports Your Agency’s Digital Government Strategy

Fri, 12 Jun 2015 10:00:33 -0400

What is governance, and how can you make good governance usable in your agency? The federal government developed the Digital Government Strategy to deliver better Web services to the American people.

Trends on Tuesday: 7 Key Takeaways From Mary Meeker's 2015 Internet Trends Report

Tue, 09 Jun 2015 10:00:25 -0400

Silicon Valley analyst Mary Meeker’s annual 2015 Internet Trends report has been released and is an exhaustive analysis of the world’s digital evolution (often mobile-first driven) and how it is affecting business, culture, and information.

Taking the Pulse of the Federal Government's Web Presence

Wed, 03 Jun 2015 13:10:57 -0400

The U.S. federal government is launching a new project to monitor how it’s doing at best practices on the Web.

A Conversation with OMB on Customer Service

Fri, 29 May 2015 11:10:49 -0400

We recently sat down with Lisa Danzig, who’s leading work at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the FY15 Cross Agency Priority (CAP) goal on Customer Service (CS). The CS CAP goal aims to help agencies deliver world-class customer service to citizens that’s on par with leading private

Getting to Know Your Users: Tips and Tricks from Veterans Affairs

Fri, 29 May 2015 10:00:22 -0400

Design research isn’t rocket science. But for many of us in the federal government, it can seem daunting and unfamiliar. We’re here to to help demystify the process of design research for those of you ready to wade into the waters. We’ve both done our fair share of design researching at the Department of Veterans

Three of the Greatest Books for Customer Experience (That Aren’t about Customer Experience)

Thu, 28 May 2015 11:10:38 -0400

Dennis Snow and Jeanne Bliss have always been the customer experience (CX) authorities in my mind. Dennis’s Lessons from the Mouse and Jeanne’s Chief Customer Officer were two of the first books I read that described what the practice of customer experience looked like in the halls of Fortune 500 companies like Lands End and Microsoft,

StudentAid.gov: Using Data to Empower Borrowers

Wed, 27 May 2015 13:10:12 -0400

It’s been a while, but in previous posts, I described what we’ve learned from operating StudentAid.gov, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Federal Student Aid website created to educate students and borrowers about the federal student aid programs and process and help them make informed decisions about financing college and career school. We first

5 Crucial Steps for Conducting an Effective Customer Interview

Tue, 26 May 2015 11:10:18 -0400

When focusing on customer experience, we all know that we need to truly understand our customer if we expect to provide them with an enjoyable experience. In an effort to do so, organizations often jump right to a survey to identify their customers’ needs and wants.

DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit 2015: Open Innovation and Collaboration

Thu, 21 May 2015 15:27:26 -0400

At the 2015 DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit, U.S. Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith challenged all techies in government to help solve problems and be part of decision-making at the highest levels of government in her opening remarks.

Top 5 Ways to Increase Email Survey Responses

Wed, 20 May 2015 01:30:06 -0400

Surveys are a great way to gain valuable insight into your customers’ true interests and needs. With the abundant number of survey tools available, it’s almost too easy to quickly put together a survey and send it out to your target audience.

Government Services Through a Life Events Approach

Fri, 15 May 2015 13:30:54 -0400

The federal government is increasingly focused on designing and delivering citizen-centered services with enhanced experiences that deliver value to customers. These ideals are established in the Presidential Management Agenda Customer Service Cross-Agency Priority Goal, the Digital Government Strategy, and various open government activities. Designing services to be responsive to be life events that drive public

Three Ways to Evolve Your Agency’s Customer Mindset

Wed, 13 May 2015 13:00:46 -0400

Customer experience (CX) improvement projects come in many forms, but evolving an agency’s entire mindset to be customer-focused requires far more in the way of commitment, time, staff and organizational patience. As the senior CX lead for a U.S. government agency and an advisory committee member to the President’s Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) goal on customer

Sites Shares Its Path to Improve the Customer Experience

Tue, 12 May 2015 13:00:25 -0400

As the product manager of Sites, my job is to make sure that our service delivers what we offer: provide an easy, fast and cost‐effective solution for federal agencies that want to create a secure government website to reach the public. With 40 websites that are currently live or in active development, our program is

Customer Experience Roundup 2015

Mon, 11 May 2015 14:01:57 -0400

Customer experience touches all of the work we do. From Web to mobile to contact centers and social media, we need to not only be aware of our customers’ experiences but also respond quickly and make changes that will enhance their experiences.

Customer Experience and User Experience Professionals – A Match Made in Heaven!

Fri, 08 May 2015 09:50:44 -0400

Recently, Forrester Research analyst Leah Buley wrote a blog post and report that reminded me of our “what’s the diff?” article on customer experience vs. user experience. In them, she describes the difference between customer experience professionals (CX) and user experience professionals (UX).

Monthly Theme: Customer Service in the Federal Digital Space

Thu, 07 May 2015 14:42:42 -0400

“The customer is king.” “The customer is always right.” Regardless of your feelings on these age-old customer service adages, the fact remains: we’re all serving someone. No matter what corner of the federal digital space you occupy, you are connecting with people, and the outcome of those connections matters. To recognize the importance of these

USA.gov in Beta: Tell Us What You Think

Mon, 04 May 2015 14:30:34 -0400

Thirteen years in digital is an eon, and on the eve of its 13th birthday, we at USA.gov found ourselves reckoning with a mid-life crisis. In the thirteen years since Firstgov.gov was launched (and ten years for FirstGov en Español), the sheer volume and sophistication

How Much Will My Agency’s Contact Center Cost?

Thu, 30 Apr 2015 11:10:52 -0400

The federal government has caught the customer experience bug. We want our customers to complete their tasks with minimal effort using a streamlined process. If they need personal help, we want it to be quick, polite, and provide the best answer. But that personal help frequently requires a team of highly skilled, dedicated people—a contact

DigitalGov’s Inaugural Podcast: How IVR Supports Contact Centers

Thu, 30 Apr 2015 01:35:34 -0400

DigitalGov University has added podcasts to our suite of offerings on DigitalGov, featuring interviews and discussions with leaders in the DigitalGov community. For the first edition, we talked to Diane Devera, “Voice of the IVR” for the USA.gov Contact Center.

Lessons Learned from 4 Decades in Federal Contact Centers

Tue, 28 Apr 2015 11:10:38 -0400

For more than 40 years, Warren Snaider has been working at the General Services Administration providing government information to the public. A Senior Federal Information Specialist, Snaider has witnessed government contact centers evolve as technology has changed the way people communicate and access information. Snaider first joined the Federal Information Center in Sacramento in 1972.

Cross-Agency Collaboration Is the Key to Reaching Millions

Mon, 27 Apr 2015 12:02:24 -0400

This story begins with a post about reverse mortgages, but don’t worry: we won’t go into the world of complex home loans. Rather, this is a story about how one federal agency is partnering with another to amplify its content and reach millions of people online—and why more agencies should do the same. Many federal

Announcing Speakers and Agenda for the 2015 Summit

Wed, 22 Apr 2015 11:31:36 -0400

We are busting at the seams with excitement because the DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit is less than a month away! Today we are announcing the working agenda and confirmed speakers.

Trends on Tuesday: The Total Market Approach

Tue, 21 Apr 2015 10:00:13 -0400

Your audience is not homogenous. No matter the agency, target audiences are not only diverse, they are diverse on a multitude of factors. Recently, evolving trends in multicultural marketing have gained attention as organizations adjust their marketing and outreach strategies to meet 21st century realities.

The Ex-Im Bank Annual Conference: A Valuable Tool in the Government CX Toolbox

Mon, 20 Apr 2015 01:53:13 -0400

It can be easy to forget that customer experience (CX) improvement efforts within the government sphere aren’t limited to surveys, journey maps, analytics, big data, apps, and technology. Watching Export-Import Bank’s Annual Conference come together, I’m reminded of the fundamental role that interpersonal communication plays in improving customer experience, from the front line of our

Government Contact Center Round Up

Fri, 10 Apr 2015 10:00:08 -0400

The Government Contact Center Council (G3C) has been working with DigitalGov University to host events for the contact center community across the federal government.

Attend the DigitalGov Summit – Virtually, or Host an Expo Table

Wed, 08 Apr 2015 11:06:05 -0400

Sign up now to watch the DigitalGov Summit from the comfort of your desk! We have just opened up registration to attend virtually.

Monthly Theme: How Federal Contact Centers Deliver Great Customer Service

Wed, 08 Apr 2015 09:35:49 -0400

At the end of last year, DigitalGov posted an article predicting that 2016 would be the year of the customer. Stephanie Thum, Vice President of Customer Experience at Export-Import Bank, looked at the great strides made in federal customer service in 2014 and called it the year of “planting seeds.” She then pointed to 2015

Trends on Tuesday: 40% of Smartphone Users Look up Government Information

Tue, 07 Apr 2015 10:00:52 -0400

The Pew Research Center released a deep research dive into U.S. Smartphone Use in 2015 that provided three big ideas and data points for government agencies to consider when planning their digital strategies.

Improving How Social Media Informs Leadership and Public Initiatives

Wed, 18 Mar 2015 11:10:01 -0400

Like private sector organizations, U.S. public sector organizations have experienced shifts in how they use both the Internet and social media to interact with the public. The mid-1990s onwards saw an increase in the number of websites helping individual members of the public learn more about various public sector organizations and initiatives directly from

Showcase Your Innovation Program at the 2015 Spring Summit

Wed, 18 Mar 2015 01:00:21 -0400

Here is another other opportunity to show DigitalGov innovators what you got! The spring Digital Citizen Services Summit will host an expo, like we did in 2014, where you can showcase your program or service.

Enabling Trusted Digital Interactions Between People & Government

Fri, 06 Mar 2015 10:00:01 -0400

Connect.Gov is a service that helps reduce agency investment and enables a secure, trusted, and inter-operable method for digital interactions between people and government.

The Internet of Everything & Small Business Opportunities

Thu, 26 Feb 2015 10:00:53 -0400

In 1995, the World Wide Web, which had been fairly niche up until then, attracted mainstream attention. What followed were 20 years of business and social innovations in how we humans chose to use the web at work, school, at home, and with our friends. The web and its “Web 2.0” successor allowed us to

Hiring For Your Digital Needs

Mon, 09 Feb 2015 10:00:07 -0400

The increasing presence of big data and all things digital will require the federal government to hire more techies. The skills brought by techies will help the federal government, but we also must consider that success in the federal government will require more than the skills they bring.

U.S. Public Participation Playbook Open for Coders and Designers on GitHub

Thu, 05 Feb 2015 11:47:52 -0400

We released the United States Public Participation Playbook this week, a new open resource agencies can use to evaluate and build better programs that give a voice to the people they serve—and the response was fantastic. Public servants and citizens around the world have shared it, and already are contributing new ideas that build from

How Government will Accelerate Anytime, Anywhere Services and Information in 2015

Thu, 29 Jan 2015 03:19:04 -0400

Innovative wearables, stronger wifi and more 3D printing have been among the many projections for the future of mobile in 2015. Whatever comes to pass, we can be certain that the anytime, anywhere user will develop new habits and desires based on new trends. Government must accelerate its customer service approach with anytime, anywhere efforts to keep up. Here’s

Walking in Our Customers’ Shoes

Fri, 16 Jan 2015 10:00:08 -0400

The General Services Administration’s (GSA’s) focus on customer experience can be traced back to its inception on July 1, 1949, when President Truman created a new federal agency to manage and store government records, handle emergency preparedness, and stockpile strategic supplies for wartime. While our customer focus has stayed with us, GSA’s mission has morphed

Connect with Your Colleagues Before You Need Them

Mon, 12 Jan 2015 11:10:04 -0400

Running a government website or social media account is complex: while trying to meet your agency’s mission goals and your customers’ needs, you also have to keep track of issues like ethics, information security, privacy, and accessibility. It’s enough to make your head spin. Luckily, no one … errr … no online communications person …

15 Government Customer Service Trends for 2015

Mon, 12 Jan 2015 10:00:52 -0400

With public expectations at an all-time high, and trust in government nearing all-time lows, agencies need to step up their game. Veterans, seniors, students, taxpayers—all Americans—deserve the best service from their government. Here are our predictions for how the federal government will improve customer service in the coming year: 1. Many agencies will create a

Trend Watch 2015: What’s in the Forecast for Digital Government?

Fri, 09 Jan 2015 12:44:18 -0400

In January on DigitalGov, we’ll highlight pieces looking at trends we see coming in the digital government space in 2015 and beyond. We have lined up articles around: Customer Service Data 3D Printing at NIH and NASA Accessibility Mobile, and Training. Check back Monday, when we kick-off the month with 15 Government Customer Service Trends.

Countdown to 2015 with Our Most Popular Articles This Year

Wed, 31 Dec 2014 14:45:22 -0400

As we round out 2014, we’re reflecting on the exciting year we’ve had at DigitalGov since we launched in February. Our mission is to share information and resources from agencies across the federal government that are working in the digital space, and highlight the services and communities that can help you meet your digital government

Trends on Tuesday: The Hottest DigitalGov Mobile Articles in 2014

Tue, 30 Dec 2014 11:10:55 -0400

QR codes, apps about whales, bullying and railroad crossings, challenges of responsive Web design and mobilizing charts and tables were the things you were most interested in this year. We publish mobile trends every Tuesday and feature a government mobile app every Thursday on the mobile channel of DigitalGov. In addition, we do recaps of MobileGov

Trends on Tuesday: Half of Online Americans Don’t Know What a Privacy Policy Is

Tue, 23 Dec 2014 09:00:17 -0400

Federal agencies are required by law to use privacy policies on their digital properties that explain how they use the data they collect about users and visitors. This ensures that these users and visitors know what the government is doing with their data.

10 Years of Digital Government—A Retrospective

Thu, 18 Dec 2014 03:09:04 -0400

In December of 2004, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued the first Policies for Federal Public Websites. Over the past decade, we’ve seen technology completely transform how government delivers information and services to the public. On this 10-year anniversary, we’re taking a walk down memory lane to recap some of the pivotal moments

3rd U.S. Public Participation Playbook Draft Released This Month

Wed, 17 Dec 2014 17:19:13 -0400

The new third draft of the U.S. Public Participation Playbook continues to incorporate changes proposed from more than 100 suggestions submitted via public comment aimed at measuring the performance and improving the development of government programs. It takes the 13 initial “plays” from rough brainstorming and collaborations to a more refined, action-focused presentation that will help contributors understand and identify opportunities

Trends on Tuesday: Smartphone Users Still Use the Phone for Talking

Tue, 16 Dec 2014 10:57:53 -0400

Smartphones are changing how organizations do business—they are more than just smart Web browsers. As I noted last week, purchases from mobile phones have dramatically increased during the holiday shopping season. The infographic from IfByPhone demonstrates how people are using

Crowdsourced Digital Citizen Services Summit

Mon, 15 Dec 2014 10:00:57 -0400

In May 2015, we are hosting the second DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit. This round we are looking to you—federal innovators across government—to help build the agenda.

Ex-Im Bank Announces Improved Customer Contact Center to Better Serve U.S. Exporters

Thu, 04 Dec 2014 11:05:11 -0400

As part of its ongoing effort to enhance customer experience for current and prospective exporters, the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. (Ex-Im Bank) is unveiling a new and improved customer contact center that includes an improved 1-800 number experience, along with a new email response system.

Will 2016 Be the Federal Government’s ‘Year of the Customer?’

Mon, 01 Dec 2014 10:00:05 -0400

As 2014 draws to a close, agencies across the federal government are beginning to think about what the customer experience (CX) landscape will look like in the years ahead. There is little doubt that 2014 saw the government make great strides on this front, setting in motion a number of initiatives that will help ensure

Jumpstart Your Government-Sponsored Initiative in a Tight Budget Climate: Try Crowdfunding

Mon, 24 Nov 2014 11:05:02 -0400

There are many ways to apply crowdfunding in the government space. This case study highlights the U.S. Department of State’s utilization of an online crowdfunding platform (CFP) to launch the Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund 2.0 (AEIF 2.0). Through this fundraising platform, exchange program alumni were able to work on innovative solutions to the world’s toughest

What’s Happening with the Internet of Things?

Fri, 31 Oct 2014 12:32:33 -0400

No Mobile Gov Month on DigitalGov would be complete without an update on the Internet of Things. Regardless if you’re talking wearables, smart homes, sensors or any other connected device, your current mobile approaches will be impacted—as will your social media, user experience and data strategies. When we last visited the topic in April, discussion

Customer Service Week 2014

Thu, 09 Oct 2014 10:00:53 -0400

They say that customer experience (CX) is the new marketing. People will tell their friends about their experience with your agency, and social media makes it easy to broadcast whether the experience was easy and enjoyable, or terrible. In 1992, Congress proclaimed the first full week in

Trends on Tuesday: Meet the Mobile Power Users

Tue, 30 Sep 2014 11:21:09 -0400

U.S. Hispanics are ahead of the digital curve, according to an analysis of strategies of leading brands and forward-thinking marketers by Lisa Gevelber, Vice President of Americas Marketing. As we’ve noted before, Hispanics not only lead in adoption of new devices, they are also power users of mobile.

The Federal Register: Improving Visitors’ Search Experience on Agency Websites

Wed, 24 Sep 2014 10:00:55 -0400

The Office of the Federal Register’s mission “informs citizens of their rights and obligations, documents the actions of Federal agencies, and provides a forum for public participation in the democratic process.” As the winner of the Bright Idea Award, FederalRegister.gov is clear and easy to use, but most citizens rarely frequent it. More frequently they

New Tools to Help You Innovate Within the FAR

Fri, 19 Sep 2014 10:00:38 -0400

Outdated development practices and narrow interpretations of acquisition regulations have prevented the federal government from taking advantage of technologies that can help agencies deliver better digital services to the public. OMB is developing new tools to help you take advantage of existing procurement authorities in the FAR, or the Federal Acquisition Regulation, the nearly 2,000

Strategy Pivot Yields Results: DigitalGov.Gov Six Months Later

Fri, 12 Sep 2014 12:00:02 -0400

Six months ago, we launched this DigitalGov.gov platform to support federal agencies in delivering 21st century digital services and information to the public. It seems a good time to share some of the thinking that went into the development of the platform, and what we’ve learned so far.

3 Steps to Keep Customers Happy During Times of Change

Fri, 12 Sep 2014 10:00:53 -0400

Just like the private sector, government agencies frequently encounter new rules, regulations, policies, and financial realities that impact the way we do business. Of course, change is never easy—and when customers feel the ripple effects of those changes, their satisfaction with an agency can waver. That’s why, during times of change, customer experience leaders should

What is a “Customer Centric” Culture – Part 2

Wed, 06 Aug 2014 13:00:02 -0400

Since April of 2011 when President Obama signed Executive Order 13571 mandating agencies improve the quality of service they give to the public, agencies have been working through strategies to best fulfill this task. We at GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) were no exception. Back in September of 2013, we wrote

Should Your Agency Be Offering Chat Service?

Mon, 28 Jul 2014 01:58:20 -0400

Live Web chat is an important component of good customer service. People like having the option of talking with an agent in real-time without having to pick up the phone. While live chat is not widespread, several agencies have shown great success in serving the public through this alternative channel. At a recent Government Contact

How the American Battle Monument Commission Developed its First Mobile App

Thu, 24 Jul 2014 10:06:53 -0400

The job of the American Battle Monument Commission (AMBC) is to manage all overseas cemeteries and memorials from WWI and WWII. There are over 200,000 veterans who are buried or memorialized at these cemeteries. When ABMC began thinking about releasing a native

The API Briefing: RealTrack – How Hackathons Help Create Apps from APIs

Wed, 16 Jul 2014 10:00:12 -0400

Once a federal agency releases an API, there are several ways they can be used in apps. The most common method is through hackathons. Hackathons are where an agency or agencies present the API(s) and invite developers to create prototype apps. The apps

The API Briefing: The Census Bureau’s Discovery Tool – Find the Right API for Your App

Wed, 25 Jun 2014 10:00:47 -0400

The Census Bureau recently released a machine-readable dataset discovery service that lists 41 Census data sets.

Trends on Tuesday: Are Mobile Devices The “Center” of Social Universe?

Tue, 24 Jun 2014 15:28:59 -0400

Mobile devices are moving closer to the center of the social universe, according to this Sproutsocial article. Platforms like Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter are overwhelmingly used on the go. Comscore predicts that there will be increasing monetization via social in the coming years. In the banking industry, where data shows many people have stopped going to

Hacking the Bureaucracy One Task at a Time

Mon, 23 Jun 2014 13:00:53 -0400

Are you having trouble getting training or professional development opportunities? Federal employees can gain access to a variety of professional development opportunities and work on digital projects across the government through the Open Opportunities program.

Government CX: Where Do You Find the Right Foundational Metrics?

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 10:00:33 -0400

Customer service. Customer satisfaction. Improving the customer experience. These buzzwords have become well-trodden territory among government strategists as a new wave of agencies attempt to ignite—or reignite—a focus on customers. Of course, putting customers first is a worthy goal. But what, exactly, do we mean when we use words like “service” and “satisfaction”? These terms

Facebook Increases Public Service Verification to Improve Citizen Engagement

Mon, 09 Jun 2014 02:32:35 -0400

Facebook is now the first social media platform to start verifying all federal government pages with their signature blue checkmark using the Federal Social Media Registry API. The Federal Social Media Registry provides the singular source that allows social media platforms to quickly collect real government accounts—emphasizing the critical need to ensure the trust, quality and

Overcoming Barriers—DigitalGov Summit Recap

Thu, 05 Jun 2014 14:09:15 -0400

As government innovators, we work to improve public services every day. In essence we are already in a public private partnership. But how can your agency capitalize on existing public private partnerships to engage citizens and enhance services? Four panelists from across government shared their public private partnerships success stories at the DigitalGov Citizen Services

The Importance of Cross-Channel Customer Service—DigitalGov Summit Recap

Thu, 05 Jun 2014 12:13:55 -0400

During the DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit last Friday, customer service experts from across government came together on a panel to share what customer service means to them and their organization and specific ways they leverage it. The other panels were on performance analysis, public private partnerships, and inter-agency work. The panelists spoke about the strategies

Harnessing the Power of Many—DigitalGov Summit Recap

Tue, 03 Jun 2014 15:14:11 -0400

At the DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit last Friday, Jacob Parcell, Manager, Mobile Programs at the General Services Administration led a panel on the challenges and benefits of Inter-Agency work. The other panels were on performance analysis, customer service across channels, and public private partnerships. “The challenges are real,” said Parcell, who quoted President Obama’s famous salmon

Turning Data Into Action—DigitalGov Summit Recap

Tue, 03 Jun 2014 14:35:10 -0400

At the DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit last Friday, more than 200 innovators across government and industry came together to share how digital services can improve citizen services and reduce cost. Four panels convened to share information on performance analysis, customer service across channels, public private partnerships and inter-agency work. We have a recap of the

DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit a Success

Fri, 30 May 2014 04:36:49 -0400

We had a GREAT DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit today. There were more than 200 digital innovators from across government and industry working to build the 21st century government the public expects.

Video Blog: Part 3: Sarah Crane, USA.gov

Tue, 27 May 2014 10:00:28 -0400

In our final video interview with Sarah Crane of USA.gov, she talks about adaptive content and how it works with APIs.

Ignite with Us

Wed, 21 May 2014 15:00:05 -0400

Have a DigitalGov success?—published an API? Got buy-in from leadership? Changed a part of your customer-service paradigm? Developed a cool dashboard? Got the app out the door? Heck! Have you prototyped a wearable, drivable or flyable? Have a DigitalGov opinion?—think we should be focusing more or less on something? Have an idea on how to

Video Blog: Part 2: Sarah Crane, USA.gov

Mon, 19 May 2014 10:32:03 -0400

Part 2 of our interview with Sarah Crane from USA.gov shares how the USA.gov team is tackling content sprawl with the USA.gov API.

Sign up For DigitalGov Citizen Services Summit, Friday, May 30

Mon, 19 May 2014 03:03:16 -0400

We won’t build the government of the 21st century by drawing within the lines. We don’t have to tell you the hard work of building a digital government doesn’t exist in a vacuum or a bubble. Show us social media without mobile, Web without data and user experience without APIs. You can’t? That’s right—in reality,

What Is a “Terms of Service” and How Do I Get One?

Tue, 13 May 2014 10:00:33 -0400

Imagine this: You just found a great online tool that can help you do your federal job 100% better. You’re all ready to download it and start conquering the world when someone asks, “Have you checked the Terms of Service?” You’re not sure what they’re

Video Blog: Sarah Crane, USA.gov

Mon, 12 May 2014 11:58:21 -0400

Next in our video blog series, Sarah Crane from USA.gov shares how multiple product lines have led to an inconsistent customer experience and how new functional teams are helping them become more efficient.

Because It’s Hard

Wed, 07 May 2014 10:00:35 -0400

Two years ago, federal agencies were set on a fast track to create a 21st century digital government. The Federal Digital Strategy served up a heaping set of deliverables on a tight timeline.

Government Open and Structured Content Models Are Here!

Mon, 05 May 2014 14:17:39 -0400

Smartphones, tablets, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, not to mention your agency’s desktop website, are all clamoring for information, but sliced and diced in different ways. How can you make your content adaptive for efficient delivery to all of these mediums? Structured content and open content models can help you create content that

Improving Contact Center Performance with Contract Incentives: Dos and Don’ts

Thu, 01 May 2014 13:20:39 -0400

“In business, words are words, explanations are explanations, promises are promises, but only performance is reality.” Harold S. Geneen As government contact center managers, we dream of having contact center contractors who regularly exceed our performance expectations. One way to motivate your contractor to excel is by including financial incentives/disincentives directly into your contact center contract.

Need Help Responding to Facebook & Twitter Questions? Use Your Contact Center Customer Service Experts

Wed, 30 Apr 2014 10:00:49 -0400

Government agencies are always looking for better ways to connect with their audiences while making more effective use of existing (or shrinking) resources. To that end, many agencies—including ours, the National Cancer Institute—have begun to use social media platforms to help serve the communications mission. As these tools have become more widely used, NCI’s Contact

Federal Perspectives on Reaching Our Audiences with New Media Tools in 2014

Wed, 30 Apr 2014 01:03:13 -0400

AIDS.gov convenes and is guided by the Federal HIV/AIDS Web Council. The Council includes Web/new media leads, subject matter experts, and communication leads representing HIV programs across the U.S. government. Together we use new media to promote federal programs, policies and resources related to HIV.

Government Social Media Isn’t Lagging, It’s Different: And That’s Good

Tue, 22 Apr 2014 16:30:34 -0400

Social Media tools, trends and algorithms come and go, but federal managers continue to see improvements in their digital engagement initiatives when they put citizens at the center of their programs.

Customer Satisfaction: Innovating with Lack of Resources

Mon, 21 Apr 2014 13:09:32 -0400

As government contact centers, we all face financial and technological constraints in our pursuit to improve the customer experience. One challenge faced by many contact centers is staffing limitations to handle the volume of incoming customer traffic. There are barely enough employees to operate phones, let alone work on meeting or exceeding the organizational customer

PolicyOps—A Better Way to Create and Implement Government Policies and Programs?

Thu, 10 Apr 2014 02:06:42 -0400

“PolicyOps” is a better way to create and implement government policies and programs through cutting-edge data analytics and new collaboration methods. PolicyOps (“Policy” plus “Operations”) is a new proposal for improving policy making and policy implementation. Based on a cutting-edge IT management method, DevOps (“Development” plus “Operations”), PolicyOps has two major concepts. First, closer collaboration

Feature Your Consumer Tools on WhiteHouse.gov

Wed, 09 Apr 2014 02:43:55 -0400

The White House launched a hub for consumer-facing tools across the federal government, and they want to feature your agency’s tools that can help make people’s lives easier. As of now, they are featuring tools from these agencies: Department of Education’s College Scorecard Department of Energy’s Hybrid Car Calculator & Home Energy Yardstick Department of Agriculture’s

Tell Us Your Internet of Things Challenges

Tue, 08 Apr 2014 01:04:09 -0400

The Internet of Things, a concept approaching reality, is best described as objects (think appliance, trees, etc.) in the world equipped with identifying devices or machine-readable identifiers that make them connected to the Web. This handy infographic charts the history and development of the idea and perhaps this washing machine could be a roadmap to

Trends on Tuesday: Global Mobile Data Traffic Nearly Doubles in 2013

Tue, 04 Mar 2014 12:18:53 -0400

Global mobile data traffic almost doubled in 2013 according to Cisco’s recent Traffic Forecast Update. There are a number of other mobile data traffic trends in the report, but here are five trends we wanted to highlight today: Global mobile data traffic grew 81 percent in 2013. Global mobile data traffic reached 1.5 exabytes per

Web Content Managers

Tue, 04 Mar 2014 10:22:04 -0400

The Web Content Managers listserv is open to content managers from any level of U.S. government: federal, state, local, and tribal.

What Do People Think of Your Content? Ask Your Contact Center!

Fri, 28 Feb 2014 09:36:00 -0400

All of us want to improve the content and information we provide to the public, but we’re intimidated by where to start: Does our website provide clear content? Is the best information hidden on pages a few layers down? What should we tweet about

Open for Innovation in DigitalGov!

Wed, 26 Feb 2014 08:43:24 -0400

There’s tons of great work and innovations happening in federal agencies, and it is happening fast. They are embracing the 21st-century citizen expectations and working to deliver anytime, anywhere, any device services and information to the public.

Trends on Tuesday: Six New Changes in Kids’ Media Habits

Tue, 25 Feb 2014 11:53:59 -0400

Children’s mobile media use has doubled and in some cases tripled in the last two years, according an eSchool News report of a study by Common Sense Media. Here are the other key findings: Roughly twice

Welcome to the Future of Census.gov

Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:34:01 -0400

If you have ever visited census.gov, you know that sorting through the vast array of information about America’s people, places and economy can be daunting. Based on customer research and feedback we collected and analyzed over time, we heard loud and clear

Customer Experience Video Blog: Stephanie Thum, Export-Import Bank

Fri, 21 Feb 2014 11:32:08 -0400

Stephanie Thum from Ex-Im Bank kicks off our video blog with an introduction to customer experience. Stephanie is Vice President of Customer Experience at Ex-Im Bank, a U.S. government agency which serves as the official export credit agency of the United States. We had a chance to

IRS Offers Updated ‘IRS2Go’ App

Thu, 20 Feb 2014 09:01:19 -0400

There’s no way to sugar-coat it. It’s that time again. Tax time. And just in (tax)time, the Internal Revenue Service has updated its handy IRS2Go Mobile App for iPhone/iTouch and Android phones. The 2014 version of the app offers a more elegant and streamlined visual experience — and a

Trends on Tuesday: Distracted Walking

Tue, 18 Feb 2014 09:50:07 -0400

Piggybacking on one of my earlier posts, People are Excited about Mobile, I’m going to talk about “Distracted Walking.” Who among us hasn’t walked and texted or checked Facebook or Twitter on our smartphones, but have bumped into someone or something while texting on your smartphone? I

State of the #SocialGov 2014

Tue, 18 Feb 2014 04:09:21 -0400

If the silos and barriers that separated our programs are smashed, what could we do to realize the full potential of innovation in public service? Whether you’re a citizen who needs better access to services, an entrepreneur looking to spark innovation in the marketplace, or a public servant who wants to get your mission done

Join HHS Ignite Innovation Day on Friday

Thu, 06 Feb 2014 16:23:22 -0400

This post was originally published on the IDEA Lab blog by Read Holman, HHS Innovation Advisor to the Chief Technology Officer and an Intrapreneur working in the HHS IDEA Lab. Launched last year in “beta” by Secretary Sebelius, HHS Ignite supports early-stage projects that can be completed in tight time frames. Ignite is part of HHS’s IDEA Lab, which

Crowdhall, Tint Now Available for Federal Use

Wed, 05 Feb 2014 16:59:18 -0400

It’s been a busy few months negotiating Terms of Service on behalf of the federal government, and we’re happy to announce CrowdHall and Tint are now available and that the Tumblr agreement has been updated for the first time in almost 2 years.CrowdHall logo

Innovation Means More, Better, Cost Effective Digital Training

Tue, 28 Jan 2014 03:02:41 -0400

SocialGov Summits bring together agencies from across government to share and learn how we can improve digital services to make services more effective and cost efficient.

How to Win Digital Like a Grammy

Mon, 27 Jan 2014 15:32:08 -0400

Digital Marketing Evangelist and analytics expert Avinash Kaushik recently published a fascinating article on Six Visual Solutions To Complex Digital Marketing/Analytics Challenges. The article is especially relevant to government organizations, because it talks about the importance of dynamic vs. static content. Government agencies tend

Extreme Makeover: GC News Release Edition

Thu, 23 Jan 2014 10:01:34 -0400

The Government of Canada (GC) is retiring the traditional news release format in favour of a more digital-friendly product that makes the key messages of announcements clearer, quick facts more accessible and integrates more effectively with social media channels. The old style

Government CX: Finding the Metrics that Matter

Mon, 13 Jan 2014 08:42:11 -0400

Customer experience (CX) is an emerging area of focus within government. My role as Vice President of Customer Experience at the Export-Import Bank speaks to this reality. Our agency’s customers and partners consist of U.S. exporters, financial services institutions, insurance brokers and foreign buyers of U.S. products and services. All play a key role in

Three Concepts for Excellence in Contact Centers

Fri, 10 Jan 2014 06:08:16 -0400

Using contact centers to deliver digital services is an emerging area in government. Due to the growth of online services, centers receive more attention and represent an important touch point for customers. When you need to speak directly with someone to get help or resolve an issue, it must be a good experience. This reflects on

Top 8 Best Practices for Federal Contact Centers

Thu, 09 Jan 2014 05:24:49 -0400

1. Meet all Laws, Requirements, Policies, and Directives for Federal Contact Centers Understand and follow all Privacy, Security, Disability, and Service Contract Act requirements. 2. Use Performance Metrics to Influence Business Rules and Drive Improvements Develop Key Performance Indicators/Metrics (see Performance Goals). CSLIC (Word document, 82 KB, 36 pages) could be used as a start. 3. Develop and Use a Comprehensive Quality Assurance Program Monitor quality. Use data to provide feedback to website/content team.

Trends on Tuesday: Federal Agency Mobile Gov Trends in 2013

Tue, 31 Dec 2013 13:31:03 -0400

Today we want to tell you about the federal agency trends we saw this year in the development of public facing mobile products.

The Nuance Between Customers and Partners

Fri, 20 Dec 2013 10:10:08 -0400

Before you can create your customer experience (CX) strategy, you have to answer the key question: Who are your customers? Consider the concept that among the groups you interact with internally, you could be their customer, they could be your customer, or you

Citizen Needs Come First for UK Websites

Thu, 19 Dec 2013 01:02:31 -0400

We have long believed that “governments learn best from other governments” and encourage far-ranging discussions with experts from other countries, as well as state and local governments. An example of this came to fruition when Michael Bracken, creator and director of the United Kingdom’s Government Digital Service, spoke to

9 Reasons Your Agency Should Have A CMS

Thu, 12 Dec 2013 15:02:56 -0400

Why Invest in a Content Management System? Does it take too long to update and post digital content? Do you lack consistent branding across your website(s)? Is outdated, redundant content leading to a poor customer experience? Does your agency website show up too far down in search results? Are you

Step away from the PDFs!

Fri, 06 Dec 2013 12:55:07 -0400

Every year, one of our office’s biggest projects is to prepare the Information Sharing Environment Annual Report to the Congress. This report examines the progress of Congress’s mandate in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to develop a better environment of terrorism-related information sharing.

State CIO Top Ten Policy and Technology Priorities for 2014

Fri, 22 Nov 2013 11:36:14 -0400

Security, consolidation, cloud services and enterprise portfolio management top the list of critical state CIO priorities in 2014, according to state information technology leaders surveyed by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO). The prioritized rankings of strategies and technologies reflect voting by state CIOs and are

Great Customer Experience through Open Dialogue

Wed, 20 Nov 2013 09:19:59 -0400

While we think about the audience, we don’t often map out the experience we want them to have when using our services. This is critical information for the design. In other cases, we may not have the data to analyze existing customers’

5 Tips for Communicating Technical Information: iPad Pilot

Tue, 12 Nov 2013 13:35:40 -0400

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.” — Mark Twain It’s simple—you’re the technical expert; you know the topic inside out, so of course you can easily explain it to a captive audience. Right? Not always. Communicators in every industry know that message

Sharing Information Across and Within Organizations Shouldn’t Be Challenging!

Mon, 04 Nov 2013 09:26:25 -0400

Are you involved in a collaborative project where you need to share information? Whether it is within an organization across units or external to an organization – across agencies, or levels of government – sharing of information can be fraught with challenges. The Center for Technology in Government, (CTG) University at Albany, New York has released

Federal Contact Center Regulations & Directives

Mon, 28 Oct 2013 05:19:56 -0400

Contact centers operated and managed by federal agencies have to follow certain laws, regulations, policies, and other directives. Unless specifically noted, contact centers operated and managed by states or local governments do not have to comply with these same requirements. Access for People with Disabilities (Section 508) Federal contact centers must comply with Section 508

Understanding Your Users’ Needs By Analyzing Search Terms

Thu, 24 Oct 2013 14:24:12 -0400

Analyzing your visitors’ search terms can help you better understand their needs. It can provide valuable data about the content and organization of the content on your site. Create a Semi-Automated Report of Terms Here’s how to create a semi-automated report for analyzing large amounts of search data on a regular basis. A human still

Cloud Computing in the Federal Government

Thu, 17 Oct 2013 13:27:51 -0400

Cloud Computing enables convenient, on-demand access to, and rapid deployment of, shared computing resources such as networks, servers, storage, applications, and services. Plan What is the Cloud? Is Cloud Computing for you? What types of services does Cloud Computing support? Types of Cloud environments Implement Learn steps to acquire, manage, and secure your agency

Twitter Chat Guidance for Federal Agencies

Wed, 16 Oct 2013 12:10:18 -0400

A Twitter town hall, or Twitter chat, is an event where agencies invite public engagement for a scheduled time period during which users can ask questions or find out more information about a topic via Twitter, much like a webinar. The questions are tagged

What Is a “Customer Centric” Culture?

Fri, 27 Sep 2013 09:21:40 -0400

In our very first customer experience (CX) blog post about GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies’ (OCSIT) Customer Experience Program, we published our principles and values. Our core principles say that all staff will: Take responsibility for providing an experience greater than customer expectations. Engage, listen and resolve. Design business from the outside

How to Be a Fly on the Wall: The Dos and Don’ts of Sharing Executive Discussions

Tue, 10 Sep 2013 10:05:05 -0400

A sure way to annoy employees is to never share what executives discuss or decide until a new mandate lands on the organization’s collective head. While senior leaders should expect some privacy in decision-making and debate, they should also expect to openly hold themselves accountable and to make sure their employees know where the

StudentAid.gov: Improving the College Financing Experience

Fri, 06 Sep 2013 15:42:06 -0400

Guest post by Brenda Wensil, Chief Customer Experience Officer for Federal Student Aid (FSA). Established in late 2010, FSA’s Customer Experience Office is responsible for identifying, measuring and reporting customer expectations and satisfaction with the financial aid services and products offered at Federal Student Aid. The launch of StudentAid.gov in July 2012,

The Impact of Culture on Customer Experience

Thu, 01 Aug 2013 07:24:19 -0400

What’s one of the most important factors in delivering a good customer experience? When I first began learning about customer experience, one of the biggest surprises was the importance of culture. Organizational culture can be defined as the values and behavior that contribute to the unique and psychological environment of an organization.It’s based on shared

Understanding Your Customer

Thu, 25 Jul 2013 10:14:06 -0400

Do you know who your customers are? And what they expect from your organization? One of the most critical components of a successful customer experience program is to understand your customer. The first step is knowing who your customers are. Are they veterans, students, senior citizens or other federal workers? In some cases your customers

How to Create a Customer Experience Index

Thu, 18 Jul 2013 07:53:02 -0400

In my last post I talked about how we’re kicking off our Customer Experience program in the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) at GSA. There are many paths to creating a customer experience program, from starting with cultural issues like employee

Kicking Off Our Customer Experience Program

Wed, 10 Jul 2013 10:23:01 -0400

The vision for my office, the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OCSIT) at GSA, is simple: Deliver a world-class experience to the public when accessing government information and services – anytime, anywhere – through the delivery channel they choose. We create and leverage products, services and

Instagram Now Available for Federal Agencies

Mon, 08 Jul 2013 10:57:55 -0400

Instagram is the latest mobile and social media tool available to federal, state and local governments to better engage with the public, with a newly negotiated government-compatible Terms of Service (TOS) agreement. GSA collaborated with Instagram to negotiate the amended terms, which brings the total number of

What’s In a Name Does Matter

Mon, 01 Jul 2013 18:48:33 -0400

Can you imagine how frustrating and confusing it would be to find several variations of the same agency name on different sites or even different pages or documents on the same site? This is what happens everyday to Spanish-speaking customers accessing the Spanish names of

5 Steps for Delivering a Better Customer Experience

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:50:08 -0400

Everyone wants to know how to provide outstanding customer experience in government. It can be difficult, because everyday our customers are also doing business with companies like Starbucks, Zappos, and Virgin America, that excel in customer service.

Disruptive Technologies That Will Change the Way We Work

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:34:49 -0400

Do you know what the most important technology will be 12 years from now, in 2025? A recent report on Disruptive Technologies from McKinsey & Company predicts a number of evolving technologies that will have the biggest impact in the next decade or so, including

Responsive Design Overview, Resources and Tools

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:08:25 -0400

Responsive Web design refers to a fluidly constructed Web page layout that scales from handheld device displays to large, high-resolution computer displays using flexible typography, flexible images, fluid grids, and CSS3 media queries. For years, most Web teams designed for the desktop. Branding, navigation, work flows – the overall look & feel of online applications

Chief Digital Officer: Roles and Responsibilities

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 11:00:11 -0400

In my previous blog post, I asked if your agency needs a Chief Digital Officer and before you answer maybe you’d want to know what exactly would a Chief Digital Officer (CDO) do at your Agency? According to Tim Bourgeois of ChiefDigitalOfficer.net , the biggest asset a CDO brings

Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends Report

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 08:49:57 -0400

Techcrunch. com reports Mary Meeker’s much anticipated annual Internet Trends report released at the D11 Conference last week shows astounding growth regarding use of smartphones and tablets.

What We’re (Really) Talking About When We’re Talking About Mobile (Hint: It’s the User)

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:01:31 -0400

It used to be when we said mobile we meant activities and devices defined strictly by mobility and the features associated with it, such as GPS, SMS, barcode readers, cell phones, etc. But when I found myself in my easy chair watching a ballgame on my

Does Your Agency Need A Chief Digital Officer?

Thu, 30 May 2013 09:03:16 -0400

Russell Reynolds Associates, the senior-level executive search firm, says that the last 2 years have seen the rise of the Chief Digital Officer (CDO), a senior executive who sits at the right hand of the CEO. According to the consulting firm Gartner, 25% of organizations will have a Chief

Government Websites and Keyword Search Strategy

Wed, 29 May 2013 01:22:50 -0400

Having a keyword search strategy is critical for government agencies to: Gain awareness, Secure a strong online presence and Help the public obtain the information they need. Since the public relies heavily on Government-related information for research, and a myriad of other tasks, each government

What is a Civic Hacker?

Wed, 15 May 2013 15:21:12 -0400

The National Day of Civic Hacking is bringing together thousands of civic hackers on June 1st and 2nd. But what is a civic hacker, anyway? “Civic hackers” as we think about it for the National Day of Civic Hacking are technologists, civil servants, designers, entrepreneurs, engineers –

Cracking the Mobile Contracting Nut

Mon, 06 May 2013 15:05:48 -0400

Mobile is a fast moving technology leaving many agencies feeling behind the contracting eight-ball. Between finding those rockstar mobile developers, figuring out what to ask for in a statement of work (SOW), the time it takes getting a contract to get those expert resources, agencies are challenged in making

Why Government Websites Need SEO

Thu, 02 May 2013 09:00:40 -0400

As the SEO Specialist for Brighton College, I have come across many frustrating, un-optimized, information-rich government websites which are difficult to find on the Internet. Although government websites may have an advantage over commercial websites pertaining to search engine optimization (SEO), without an intentional SEO strategy

Using Gamification in Federal Projects

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 02:35:26 -0400

Gamification is the practice of using game technology or design principles for something that is not inherently game-like. Some examples include: bronze, silver, and gold badges for reading a set number of books, progress bars in online surveys, leader boards for top grades on an exam, or rewards for attending in-person events. As gamification projects are

Government as an Information Franchise

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 09:28:00 -0400

The Digital Government Strategy represents best practices in today’s web services landscape. The DGS outlines a path to making government web services faster, more cost-efficient and higher-performing. It also frames out the digital government that everybody wants by making government information more flexible, actionable and easier to use. America Has Been There and Done That. Really?! Many consider

Digital Government Strategy Milestones Report

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:00:19 -0400

Yesterday marked three months since the release of the Digital Government Strategy and agencies have been making great strides in meeting the milestones toward building a 21st Century Government.

Agency Digital Strategy Pages

Wed, 22 Aug 2012 10:00:26 -0400

In his May 23rd, 2012 Presidential Memorandum, President Obama directed Executive Departments and Agencies to implement the requirements of the Digital Government Strategy, and create a page at www.[agency].gov/digitalstrategy to publicly report progress of this implementation.

Hitting the Ground Running With the Digital Strategy

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 07:28:21 -0400

Last month, the Obama Administration launched the Digital Government Strategy, a comprehensive roadmap aimed at building a 21st Century Digital Government that delivers better digital services to the American people.

Making Mobile Gov Project

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 15:20:28 -0400

Held during the summer 2011, Making Mobile Gov was a three phase multi-media project created by the MobileGov Community of Practice to help federal agencies discover, discuss, and design a citizen-centric path to mobile government services and information.

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Congress.gov, developed and maintained by the Library of Congress, is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information.

Directory of services, tools, and teams

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Directory of free and low-cost shared services and tools offered by the GSA and other agencies.