John Kamensky

Part 4: What’s Happening Today with Federal Distance Work?

Submitted by on Mon, 06/08/2020 - 14:23

[Note: This column also appears in Washington Technology. It is the fourth in a series on how the COVID-19 crisis has changed how government works. Emily Craig and Michaela Drust, IBM, are co-authors of this column]

But will individual telework only be seen as a workaround until everyone returns to the office, or will agencies consciously decide to change how work will be done from now on, as distributed teams working from anywhere?

Weekly Roundup: May 25-29, 2020

Submitted by on Fri, 05/29/2020 - 08:23

John Kamensky

Promoting Employee Engagement

Submitted by on Thu, 05/28/2020 - 10:05

When President Obama took office, it was the depth of the Great Recession and he froze pay and bonuses for the civil service to reflect the economic downturn across the country.  However, the Administration undertook several efforts to improve the working environment for employees by:

Part 3: What’s Been Government’s Experience with Distance Work Over the Past Decade?

Submitted by on Tue, 05/26/2020 - 11:26

[Note: This column also appears in Washington Technology. It is the third in a series on how the COVID-19 crisis has changed how government works.]

Weekly Roundup: May 18-22, 2020

Submitted by on Fri, 05/22/2020 - 10:26

John Kamensky

Empowering HR and the Managers: Lessons from the Bush Administration

Submitted by on Thu, 05/21/2020 - 12:02

In early 2001, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) designated “Strategic Human Capital” as one of the federal government’s high risks for potential failure.  This issue is still on its list today, even though there have been concerted efforts by subsequent presidential administrations to address the issues raised by GAO.

GAO’s concerns at the time were that agencies did not:

Weekly Roundup: May 11-15, 2020

Submitted by on Fri, 05/15/2020 - 07:58

John Kamensky

Empowering the Federal Workforce to Get Results: Then and Now

Submitted by on Wed, 05/13/2020 - 16:53

But as IRS managers have found, this is an uncomfortable shift because it involves a culture change for managers. They have to trust their workers to do the right thing and empower them with the information, training, and tools to do it.

Veteran Benefits Administration’s Best Year Ever?

Submitted by on Tue, 05/12/2020 - 14:48

But there’s also some pretty amazing stuff going on in federal agencies that are not directly on the pandemic response front lines – and are getting their core mission work done from home.

One of those agencies – the Veterans Benefits Administration – has even exceeded its performance targets set before the coronavirus pandemic!  And at the same time, agency head Undersecretary Paul Lawrence has accelerated his personal outreach efforts to veterans via state-by-state tele-town halls where he’s connecting with tens of thousands of veterans in each state.

Part 2: How Is the Private Sector Pivoting to “Distance Work?”

Submitted by on Fri, 05/08/2020 - 14:13

[Note: This column also appears in Washington Technology. It is the second in a series on how the COVID-19 crisis has changed how government works.]

Nowhere has this been truer than the workplace, where companies and employees have found remote operations far more feasible than expected.

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Emeritus Senior Fellow
IBM Center for The Business of Government

Mr. Kamensky is an Emeritus Senior Fellow with the IBM Center for The Business of Government and was an Associate Partner with IBM's Global Business Services.

During 24 years of public service, he had a significant role in helping pioneer the federal government's performance and results orientation. Mr. Kamensky is passionate about helping transform government to be more results-oriented, performance-based, customer-driven, and collaborative in nature.

Prior to joining the IBM Center, he served for eight years as deputy director of Vice President Gore's National Partnership for Reinventing Government. Before that, he worked at the Government Accountability Office where he played a key role in the development and passage of the Government Performance and Results Act.

Since joining the IBM Center, he has co-edited six books and writes and speaks extensively on performance management and government reform.  Current areas of emphasis include transparency, collaboration, and citizen engagement.  He also blogs about management challenges in government.

Mr. Kamensky is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and received a Masters in Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, in Austin, Texas.