Tag Archives: open government

A Look Back at 2018

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As we complete another trip around the sun, we took some time to look back at the past year and do some thinking about what's to come in 2019. Market Connections helped with this reflection when they released their 2018 Federal Media and Marketing Study with a focus on confidence in news sources. Federal news media and associations were among the most trusted sources of content for federal buyers both in terms of written information and events. Additionally, the study found that participation in events and webinars has remained very steady over the past several years. This finding was echoed in our own survey conducted late last year. Events have proven to be a staple for marketers and attendees alike.

2018 saw us celebrating our own place as a staple in the events community. We celebrated eight years of providing an online, one-stop-shop for the public sector and supporting industry. Users are able to find the events that aid in their professional development, their organization's mission, and their business goals. Continue reading →

Opening Up Government Through Technology

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There's a huge buzz and movement about opening up government. There are three phrases that are used frequently in relation to openness in government but each mean something a bit different.[Tweet "The focus on openness is changing the way IT is designed, developed, and implemented. #GovEventsBlog"]

  1. Open Government - This is a core tenant of our democracy, the belief that citizens have the right to access the documents and proceedings of the government to allow for effective public oversight. While this has always been a practice of government (via the Freedom of Information Act), with the move to digital records the way people want to receive and the way the government can share information has changed dramatically.
  2. Open Data - This is data that can be freely used, re-used and redistributed by anyone. Much of the information the government holds should be open data, but giving people the access they require has been a stumbling block to open government.
  3. Open Source - This is the technical piece of the "open" puzzle. Open Source is software for which the code is made freely available and may be used and changed. Open Source solutions allow people to not only get at the data but also work with that data in new ways.

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Improving the Citizen Experience With Government Services

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In 2011, President Obama announced "Improved Customer Service" as a cross-agency priority. Since then, a concerted effort has been put forth to improve the citizen experience with government services. The goal was for each agency to develop a customer service plan that included ways to use technology to improve the customer experience. Agencies posted the plans on their Open Government websites in October 2011, with the goal to build on these plans to streamline and improve customer service delivery.[Tweet "Improving the Citizen Experience With Government Services #GovEventsBlog"]

Since then, the "digitization of government" has become a hot trend followed by the media. More and more agencies are moving formerly cumbersome and paper-intensive processes online as Internet access via smart phones and other devices has become prevalent. All this work has resulted in some positive outcomes. Continue reading →