From 8e81b3cbe8d12798a988cd451475271aac0fab00 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Will Slack Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:17:09 -0400 Subject: [PATCH 1/2] Create 2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-org --- _posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org | 14 ++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 14 insertions(+) create mode 100644 _posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org diff --git a/_posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org b/_posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4f0853d --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org @@ -0,0 +1,14 @@ +--- +title: Advice for starting a new digital org in government +author: +layout: post +permalink: /starting-a-gov-digital-org/ +--- + +A former colleague recently asked for advice on how to show impact and results when beginning a gov digital org. Here's some of what I wrote them: + +- Differentiate between actions taken **so the org can breathe/live** and actions to **accomplish the org's mission.** In a healthy parent organization, those are the same, but in many gov contexts, they are not. Showing impact and results may not actually [win the allies needed](https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2021-06-11/hellsite-austin-gov/) for the org to exist. +- Identify a possible champion perceived as objective by the wider community, and solve something for them. Their "vouch" to their network will matter more than anything you say directly. +- Do a few flashy things to demonstrate your ethos that surprise your community and confound their expectations. [The micropurchase platform](https://18f.gsa.gov/2015/10/13/open-source-micropurchasing/) was a successful example of that at 18F. +- Create evidence of your approach from other agencies. At 18F, Melody Kramer wrote [this blog post](https://18f.gsa.gov/2016/05/24/the-user-centered-redesign-of-identitytheft-gov/) about a site she found out about on reddit - and it resonanted such that [Leidos adapted her post for their own uses](https://www.leidos.com/interactives/modernize/files/app_modernization_section_leidos_blog_excerpt_user-centric_design.pdf). +- When you ship something real/impactful, make sure that outside advocates know about it and can support your work in ways that hit the "press attention" incentive buttons in gov. From 508a50bd4e4a755b4cea815bda6f73a5cc321f61 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Will Slack Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:18:41 -0400 Subject: [PATCH 2/2] Update and rename 2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org to 2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org --- ...tal-org => 2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org} | 6 +++--- 1 file changed, 3 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-) rename _posts/{2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org => 2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org} (79%) diff --git a/_posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org b/_posts/2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org similarity index 79% rename from _posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org rename to _posts/2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org index 4f0853d..2bc6927 100644 --- a/_posts/2024-04-10-starting-a-gov-digital-org +++ b/_posts/2024-04-10-showing-impact-in-new-digital-org @@ -1,13 +1,13 @@ --- -title: Advice for starting a new digital org in government +title: Showing impact in a new digital org in government author: layout: post -permalink: /starting-a-gov-digital-org/ +permalink: /showing-impact-in-new-digital-org/ --- A former colleague recently asked for advice on how to show impact and results when beginning a gov digital org. Here's some of what I wrote them: -- Differentiate between actions taken **so the org can breathe/live** and actions to **accomplish the org's mission.** In a healthy parent organization, those are the same, but in many gov contexts, they are not. Showing impact and results may not actually [win the allies needed](https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2021-06-11/hellsite-austin-gov/) for the org to exist. +- Differentiate between actions taken **so the org can breathe/live** and actions to **accomplish the org's mission.** In a healthy parent organization, those are the same, but in many contexts, they are not. Showing impact and results may not actually [win the allies needed](https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2021-06-11/hellsite-austin-gov/) for the org to exist. - Identify a possible champion perceived as objective by the wider community, and solve something for them. Their "vouch" to their network will matter more than anything you say directly. - Do a few flashy things to demonstrate your ethos that surprise your community and confound their expectations. [The micropurchase platform](https://18f.gsa.gov/2015/10/13/open-source-micropurchasing/) was a successful example of that at 18F. - Create evidence of your approach from other agencies. At 18F, Melody Kramer wrote [this blog post](https://18f.gsa.gov/2016/05/24/the-user-centered-redesign-of-identitytheft-gov/) about a site she found out about on reddit - and it resonanted such that [Leidos adapted her post for their own uses](https://www.leidos.com/interactives/modernize/files/app_modernization_section_leidos_blog_excerpt_user-centric_design.pdf).