Reinventing The Relationship Between Government and People
As local governments have down-sized staffing and dramatically reduced services to survive the Great Recession and other economic challenges in recent years, we’ve often been told that we’ll just have to do more with less. Yet, at the very same time that government...
The Learning Curve: How Internships Can Revive A New Generation
In August of 2002, I was somewhat unsure of the direction I was going to take my career, and my life. I had recently graduated from the University of New Hampshire with my MPA. I had also just completed my work study program with the Social Security Administration. ...
Managing in the Public Sector: Seven Steps for Stellar Success
Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken. – Oscar Wilde Do you associate managing with more-is-less, I’m doomed, and it’s-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it? Does thinking about all your managing duties make you queasy? Take heart! And a Pepto-Bismol while you’re...
Bagging Your Online Baggage
I still remember the day that my sister-in-law taught me how to use the Internet. I learned about Google and Yahoo and how easy it was to find people, places and things. As recruiters, we used to have to dial hundreds of phone numbers to find candidates to fill jobs,...
How A Public Service Career Can Make You Millions
There is an invisible line in the Public Service. And what makes that invisible line? Decision makers. If you are around the decision makers, buddies with them, influencing them, and maybe even making decisions with them, then you are on the right side of that line!...
Political Leadership – Does it Impact Employee Performance?
I am a 40 year public servant, having spent the vast majority of that time (37 years) as a non-elected civil service employee. For 24 years I was an assistant general manager or general manager of medium-sized to large-sized public safety organizations in the City of...
Count Your Lucky STARs: Showcasing Accomplishments on Your Resume
One of the biggest mistakes federal job candidates make is failing to sell themselves through accomplishments. Some candidates believe that listing accomplishments is only done on résumés in the corporate world. Not true! Actually, a résumé for a position in the...
Succeeding in a Downsized Organization
For generations the hallmark of government employment has been rock-steady job security. Career public sector employees often cite job security, together with generous retirement and fringe benefit packages, as factors which initially attracted them to their jobs and...
The Encore Career
Aging baby boomers, coupled with early retirement incentives designed to reduce salary loads, are swelling the ranks of retired public service professionals. Despite this crop of 60’s era retirees’ declaration that they would not toil into their advanced years like...
Reengineering Government is No Longer a Myth
Government outsourcing, or privatization, is a central strategy to the notion of reengineering government which has been widely discussed and written about since the 1970s. However, while recession-choked cities and counties are now looking closer at outsourcing,...
Avoiding the Serial Applicant Syndrome
Step 1: Don’t apply for the job. Step 2: Repeat, as needed. Sometimes your job search can feel like a numbers game - the more applications you send in, the better the odds that you’ll land that dream position, right? Well, what may have worked when you were in high...
Is the Public Sector making a turnaround?
Decreasing revenue streams and budget shortfalls have led to hiring freezes, unpaid furloughs, and in many cases, layoffs of state and local government employees across the country. And while the private sector is feeling its own brand of pain, the recession has...
Local Government Term Limits
Any individual who advocates for mandatory local government term limits for local government offices has either never worked in local government or Is a fool. Term limits for County Board, City Council, Mayor, Township, Borough, Parish or School Board public offices...
Impact of Federal Elections on Local Employment
At least one interpretation of former Speaker of the House Tip O'Neil's declaration that "All politics is local" suggests that while people may support or reject an issue on a national basis, they tend to actually vote in ways that impact them locally. If you...
Communication Is Critical In Change Management
Much has been said since 2008 – and still is, today – about the devastating impact upon governmental budgets brought on by the foreclosure and property tax calamities. In fact, I don’t believe enough can be said about it. Having once served as Public Information...
Conflict of Interest – Taking a More Aggressive Approach to Protecting the Integrity of Public Service
As public servants we are all fully cognizant of the State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act (promulgated from the Political Reform Act of 1974) and the prescribed requirements for disclosing our financial interests and avoiding such conflicts. Most all...
Your Professional Brand
As governments begin to hire again it is imperative for those seeking employment to be better positioned as a powerful professional brand. Everything about you should demonstrate that as a candidate for employment you are THE protagonist for high performance and...
Federal Hiring and Veteran’s Preference
Are you a veteran of the armed services? Are you taking advantage of your veteran’s preference whilepursuing employment with the Federal government? Disabled veterans and veterans who served on active duty at certain times receive special hiring preference. It is one...