Education

It seems that everyone is moving to the cloud these days. A recent Gartner report stated that 75 percent of all databases will be deployed or migrated to the cloud by 2022, with just 5 percent ever considered for return to on-premise servers. Gartner goes on to say that this trend is mainly around analytics databases and software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications. That’s a lot of vital data moving out of on-premise server rooms and being handed over to third party vendors!

Travel incentive programs have been used as a tool to motivate and engage employees since the 1970s. In recent years, experiential rewards such as travel have been growing in popularity.

On Thursday last week, May 9, I was watching one of the business TV channels to learn about the status of our trade war with China, and the anchor announced that President Trump was about to speak. I stayed on the channel to listen, and, surprise! The first sentences Trump pronounced had nothing to do with China, and everything to do with surprise medical bills: “This must end. We’re going to hold insurance companies and hospitals accountable…this will be something that will have a big impact…” the president said.

It makes sense that when an organization such as a Government agency is looking to create a ‘wonderful’ workplace, it needs more than just a ‘political’ restructure to make it happen. Some may even suggest that the notion of a Government agency being the most ‘wonderful’ place on earth to work, is the antithesis of the reality of working in a Government organization.

It can be very challenging to maintain or grow within a career as a military spouse. Military life is filled with PCS moves, deployments, regular family obligations, and much more. For some, military life also means the challenges of injuries or health issues. This often means trying to find a new job with every move or trying to maintain a career despite the challenges of military life.

These questions are usually asked out of frustration, and they will not help you get the answers you seek. Such questions tend to be disrespectful and demeaning, especially as they are usually accompanied by a negative tone and motivation. Unfortunately, all of us have likely either asked or been asked these types of questions.

Changing daily practices is about creating new habits: clarifying desired practices, evaluating current practices, then closing any gaps. Research says that developing new habits requires demonstration of new behaviors for 21 days – and there’s no time like the present to start!

Unemployment reached record lows in 2019, but the competition for government jobs is always fierce. Federal employees, for example, often don’t secure positions the first or even second time they apply for one.

Establishing trust requires elements of organization, honesty, integrity, openness, and sound policymaking and implementation. Building confidence requires “response-ability”, competence, commitment, and reliability.

Being in a leadership position carries a lot of responsibility and decision making. Most of the time, the shots you call effect many others down the line and sometimes for years to come. While it’s almost impossible to please everyone, there are some ways to guarantee you’re equipped to make the right decisions.