Rock Creek Roundup (January 21 Edition)

Posted by: Meagen Ryan, Director of Strategy Jan 21, 2011 0 Comments

DoD’s social media policy shifts, Facebook gives government agencies some friendly advice, NASA has an app for that, research firm IDC releases its predictions for government IT in 2011, and New York City cuts through the red tape of starting a business with an innovative portal, all in this week’s issue of the Rock Creek Roundup.

—In a move that generated quite a bit of conversation, the Pentagon eliminated its social media office. According to the article in Wired, DoD sees social media as part of many people’s jobs rather than the role of one office. Over on GovFresh, Alex Howard highlights the debate and concern this move has generated, including thoughtful questions from Noel Dickover on Govloop.

—Focusing on engagement rather than output will be key to government’s successful use of social media tools, according to Facebook’s associate manager for privacy and global public policy Adam Conner. At the recent Social Graph seminar at the George Washington University School of Business, Conner talked about government agencies that are doing a good job of becoming more people-focused. Among others, he cited the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s practice of setting up a disaster-specific Facebook page in addition to maintaining the agency’s official Facebook page as a way to help facilitate a local conversation and coordinate local response. If you work for one of the 66% of government agencies with at least one social media profile—or more importantly, if you work for one of the remaining government agencies that hasn’t delved into the social environment yet—the article is worth a read.

—Looking for a way to access NASA’s latest “technology news, a searchable database of NASA-derived innovations, a map of spinoff locations, a historical timeline” and a database highlighting licensing opportunities available from the agency? As they say, there’s an app for that. Earlier this week, NASA unveiled the NASA Spinoff App for Android as a way to help the public understand the ways that spinoffs of NASA-created technologies have had an impact on our daily lives. Plans are in the works for additional mobile versions, including the iPhone and the iPad.

—Cloud computing, collaboration, and citizen involvement are just three of the predictions of what 2011 holds for government IT. According to the recently released “U.S. Government 2011 Top 10 Predictions” by research firm IDC, 2011 will be a year that will see cloud computing attaining “critical mass” among government agencies. The report also asserts that we’ll be able to see Open Government Initiatives at work via collaboration between agencies and processes, and reiterates the larger feeling that mobile devices will continue to have a growing impact on where and how government employees work.

—Looking to start a business? One local government has developed an online solution aimed at simplifying the often complex business start-up process by offering a single place for all business info. For would-be business owners in New York City, the new website NYC Business Express offers one-stop-shopping for business information, using a wizard interface to help guide potential business owners through the myriad of licenses, permits, and other challenges in the business process. The website allows visitors to get information geared specifically for their type of business, and includes a variety of checklists and other tools to help keep entrepreneurs on track. Even if you’re not a NY resident, it’s still worth a visit to the site to see a really good example of a well-designed user interface—they’ve done an impressive job.

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Meagen Ryan

Director of Strategy

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