A Project Manager's Perspective on the GAO’s Federal Data Transparency Report

A Project Manager's Perspective on the GAO’s Federal Data Transparency Report

Dennis D. McDonald
Collaboration, Data Access, Governance, Project Management, Standards, Transparency
While improving data transparency for both financial and non-financial data is an important goal, any effort requiring an enterprise level shift in data formats or associated business processes can also require a substantial early peak in required resources. If in fact we need to delay implementing data transparency programs, perhaps we can use our time wisely by doing a more detailed job of research and planning.
Understanding How Open Data Reaches the Public

Understanding How Open Data Reaches the Public

Dennis D. McDonald
Big Data, Collaboration, Data Access, Governance, Local, Open Data, , Transparency
In the long run, traditional top-down efforts at management control may be insufficient to ensure that both agency goals and the potential benefits of open data access — including unanticipated cponsequences — are realized in an efficient and cost effective manner. While leadership by the Federal government’s IT infrastructure will be necessary, it will also be necessary to ensure that ongoing efforts to advance open data access are managed efficiently both across agencies and in accordance with individual agency and program priorities; IT staff cannot do this on their own and will have to work closely with agency management.
When Does a Public Data Good Become a Private Data Resource?

When Does a Public Data Good Become a Private Data Resource?

Dennis D. McDonald
Accessibility, Big Data, Business Models, Copyright, Costs, Data, Data Access, , Governance, Policy, Transparency, eGovernment
It may be that the greatest challenge facing private entrepreneurs in developing new and valuable information products and services based at least partially on public data will be public resistance to paying for information, no matter how new, innovative, or unique these producrts or services are.
Who Buys Strategy Consulting These Days?

Who Buys Strategy Consulting These Days?

Dennis D. McDonald
Best Practices, Business Models, Consulting, Innovation, Project Management, Strategic Planning, Strategy
“It seems there are two extreme situations where people buy high-end analytical strategy work. At one end of the spectrum you have a company that’s doing well, has money to spend, and is in the enviable position where management can afford to “sit back” and contemplate what to do next. At the other end of the spectrum you have the company that’s not doing well, has cash flow problems, is having a tough time making payroll, but management realizes it really needs to do something different and wants to have an outsider look rationally at the problem of what to do next.”
The State of Government Data Transparency, 2013

The State of Government Data Transparency, 2013

Dennis D. McDonald
Big Data, Data Access, Open Data, Sequestration, Standards, Transparency
What I found most interesting and useful about the Data Transparency 2013 conference held September 10 in Washington DC was the diversity. The ability of Hudson Hollister’s Data Transparency Coalition to bring together such a high-quality group of speakers and attendees representing so many different perspectives was quite an accomplishment.
How Project Management Roles Impact Use of Mobile Technologies

How Project Management Roles Impact Use of Mobile Technologies

Dennis D. McDonald
Collaboration, Post-smartphone, Project Management, Smartphone, Tablet, Usability
A project manager has a certain set of responsibilities and authorities, a project task leader has another, and a temporary member of a specific task team will have yet another. How individuals performing these roles interact with the project plan, with other project team members, and with project stakeholders and clients will influence — and be influenced by — how mobile technologies can support project management, communication, and collaboration.

What I'd like to see in a mobile project management app

Dennis D. McDonald
Collaboration, Mobile, Mobile Tech, Project Management, Smartphone, Tablet
One assumption is that a core set of project planning and task assignment information exists that can serve as a baseline model for structuring how data are organized, displayed and updated. Regarding the last point: the app needs to have the ability not just to organize and display information, it also needs to make it easy for participants to update and report status on actions and deliverables.

What's Next, Now That We're In a "Post-Smartphone" Era?

Dennis D. McDonald
Mobile, Mobile Tech, PRISM, Post-smartphone, Privacy, Smartphone, Transparency
The bottom line: in a post-smartphone era, the more we know where our data are and how they are used the better off we are. Network companies — or governments — that resist making such data more accessible will be disadvantaged in the marketplace. Users of networks that ignore the interests of their customers will likewise be disadvantaged.
Have We Already Entered a "Post-Smartphone" Era?

Have We Already Entered a "Post-Smartphone" Era?

Dennis D. McDonald
Innovation, Mainstream, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Mobile Tech, Post-smartphone, Smartphone
In the world I live in there are still a lot of people who are satisfied with having “just a phone.” Still, what passes for “just a phone” these days is more powerful than the combined computing power devoted to the Manhattan Project, the Air Force/NASA X-15 program, and the early Space Shuttle Orbiter’s primitive onboard computers.
Perspectives on the NSA and PRISM: What Dyson Missed

Perspectives on the NSA and PRISM: What Dyson Missed

Dennis D. McDonald
Accountability, Analytics, Data, Data Access, Democracy, Media, Memory, NSA, PRISM, Privacy, Semantic Web, Snowden, Transparency, Cold War
In NSA: The Decision Problem George Dyson lays out a credible historical view on why he thinks what Snowden revealed about the NSA and PRISM was inevitable. While it’s certainly a pleasure to read a discussion of these issues that is so thoughtful, I think he misses one major theme that helps us understand our current predicament over what to do about Snowden.
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