The idea of a career as a pre-determined and linear path is being challenged in many areas of working life. An increasingly common experience is a changing set of mini-careers, like riding a carousel rather than climbing a ladder, where you get on and off at various...
The biggest problem with Taking Off the Boots To Put On A Suit is the transition from service member to civilian. Every service member knows that the mission to protect America comes first. This means your time while in service is consumed with tactical and strategic...
Among the many facets of public administration one can be immersed into, perhaps the most interesting (and at times nerve-racking) is that of public sector labor negotiations. There are many great books, essays, and papers that discuss the broad field of negotiations...
Oh, January. The month always starts out with so much promise—it’s a chance to set goals for the upcoming year and wipe the slate clean of past bad habits. We start out strong, buying fresh ingredients at the grocery store or starting a gym membership, but midway...
Despite serving on the Advisory Board of an organization dedicated to local government professionals, I came into my MPA program at UNC-Chapel Hill interested in federal government. But over the last five months, while maintaining an interest in the federal...
Surveys measuring overall employee satisfaction attest to the fact that government workers are more disengaged on the job than their private-sector peers. Turnover can be directed to either the more positively perceived private-sector, or more forward thinking...
Political communications is a challenging field that demands a unique set of skills. On one hand, the work allows you to focus on a cause or candidate you believe in, but politics also requires a thick skin and a quick wit. To succeed, it’s important to be a strong...
Typically when we think about emergency management, we think about the professionals who are on the ground when an emergency happens—such as firefighters, police officers, emergency medical technicians, and other first responders. However, there are also a number of...
I recently attended a conference on waste to energy in southern California. I was amazed at the amount of municipal employees who could see the writing on the wall with regard to the next generation of technology coming online. The ability to manage the last 10 to...