Archive for category Ken Blanchard
Government focuses on executive education
Posted by Dominic Giammarinaro in Federal Agency, Government, Ken Blanchard, Leadership, Leadership Development, Management, Uncategorized on May 6, 2010
NNSA hosts inaugural executive summit
Last week, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) convened more than 120 senior Federal leaders for a first of its kind Executive Summit aimed at identifying best practices, learning leadership techniques and discussing the future of management across the nuclear security enterprise.
“NNSA has existed and grown as an agency for 10 years, but this is the first time we’ve been able to bring all of our Federal executives together in one place to talk about the governance of government and the way we do business,” said NNSA Administrator Thomas D’Agostino. “It’s important as we pursue our core missions to make sure we’re aware of our challenges, constantly formulating solutions and, most importantly, talking to and learning from each other.”
The two-day event, held last Thursday and Friday at a hotel in Northern Virginia, was divided into three main parts. The first featured presentations from Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, Deputy Secretary Daniel Poneman and senior staff from Capitol Hill.
NNSA’s Federal executives also heard from national experts on leadership including world renowned author Ken Blanchard; Clint Sidle, Director of the Park Leadership Fellows Program at Cornell University and Bob Tobias, Director of the Institute for Public Policy at American University. The Summit also featured presentations and panel discussions led by NNSA senior executives and breakout sessions focused on sharing ideas and overcoming challenges.
NNSA’s Executive Corps is comprised of 109 members of the Senior Executive Service and 57 Excepted Service Pay Band V employees from across NNSA’s nuclear security enterprise. As the leaders of the federal civilian workforce, senior executives strive each day to create a more citizen-centered, result-oriented federal government.
Ideas and results from the Executive Summit will be compiled into a report for Administrator D’Agostino and implemented in the following months. NNSA plans to host an Executive Summit each year to ensure continued collaboration.
Photos from the event are available on NNSA’s new website: www.nnsa.energy.gov
Working Virtually—Challenges and Benefits
Posted by Dominic Giammarinaro in Communication, Government, Ken Blanchard, Leadership, Leadership Development, Performance, Productivity, Teams, Technology, Telework, Trust, Virtual on April 22, 2010
By Ruth Anne Randolph
With the blizzard that hit the Washington DC area earlier this year, estimates of the cost of lost productivity among federal government agencies totaled $550,000,000 for one lost week. When people cannot physically get to their offices, current technology offers multiple options to allow staff to continue to work from home. Recently, I talked with a client who wasn’t in her office because of the blizzard, then a personal illness, for three weeks in February. Yet, she was productive because her agency was set up for teleworking.
Why is teleworking not more wide-spread in the federal government? It is beginning, but government is not leading the way. If teleworking were more established, this loss of productivity would definitely be mitigated.
What holds government agencies back? Lack of trust and accountability are big hang-ups, our clients tell me. Can we address these hurdles? Absolutely. The virtual work world has to be structured with more intentional support and clear direction because people do not have the safety net of informal communications. Expectations must be crystal clear, with milestones and check-ups more defined.
As Ken Blanchard says, “As a manager, the important thing is not what happens when you are there, but what happens when you are not there.”
What ideas do you have on building trust and ensuring accountability? How can government agencies maintain productivity while staff telework?
Can we look at the blizzard of 2010 as an opportunity to open the door to new approaches to improve performance and worker satisfaction even when it is 70 degrees?
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