A revolution is happening in government as the result of a new
generation of government employees, the rise of Web 2.0
technologies, and the Obama Administrations focus on transparency,
participation, and collaboration. Often called Gov 2.0, this next
generation of government workers is marked by the principles of
openness, transparency, and collaboration, as well as the idea that
the voices of the many are smarter than the voice of one.
While this movement has been brewing for some time, Gov 2.0 swept
the United States and Washington, D.C., in late 2008. Excitement
about the governments use of Web 2.0 technology began when agencies
saw how the Obama campaign used Web 2.0 technologiessuch as the
social network myBarackObama, Facebook, and Twitterto bring
together a community of millions of citizens toward a common goal.
This excitement continued during the presidential transition
period, when the various transition teams continued to use new
media from YouTube videos and the Google Moderator Open for
Questions sessions to a modern change.gov website.
Presidential Leadership
Use of Web 2.0 technologies continued as President Obama moved into
his new role. One of President Obamas first acts in office was to
issue a directive calling for a more transparent, collaborative,
and participatory government. Leaders from the U.S. Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) and Office of Science and Technology
Policy (OSTP) solicited input to the memo from all federal
employees through the OMB MAX wiki.
The first White House New Media team, headed by Macon Phillips from
the Obama campaign team with help from government insiders such as
Bev Godwin, has been working through new challenges based on rules
created decades ago. The team has already launched the Ask the
President contest, which received hundreds of thousands of
suggestions from citizens. Additionally, new media directors are
being put in place at major cabinet agencies.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has led a number of
initiatives in the space. They have worked with Web 2.0 providers,
such as YouTube, Facebook, and MySpace, to sign Terms of Service
agreements allowing federal agencies to use these new tools. The
Federal Web Manager Committee has formed the Social Media
Subcouncil, co-chaired by Jeff Levy of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and Joyce Bounds of the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA), to focus on sharing lessons learned via
their blog, wiki, and webinars with Web 2.0 companies, including
Facebook, YouTube, and OReilly Media.
Government agencies also have begun using social media tools for
various events. For both the recent recall on peanut butter and the
H1N1 virus, agencies such as HHS, CDC, and DHS used Twitter,
Facebook, blogs, and widgets to ensure that government information
reached the citizens where they interacted. There are many others
examples including Hilary Clintons Digital Townhall of the
Americas.
Grassroots Involvement
At the grassroots level, a group of knowledgeable insiders is
forming, connecting, and spreading information across social
networks, such as GovLoop and Twitter. The Government 2.0 Club,
modeled after the popular Social Media Club, was launched in March
2009 and provides a further mechanism for branding events and
sharing wisdom. They recently held the first Gov 2.0 Barcamp, where
more than 500 members of the government community met and shared
ideas on making Gov 2.0 happen. And nonprofit organizations, such
as The Sunlight Foundation, are developing applications and hosting
events in an effort to make government more transparent and
ultimately more accountable to the public.
Silicon Valley has started paying attention to the trend and are
moving into Washington, D.C. Tim OReilly (founder of OReilly Media
and creator of the term Web 2.0) recently launched the Gov 2.0
Summit and has shifted focus on the importance of open government
through a government as platform idea. Luminaries such as Craig
Newmark, founder of Craigslist, have begun showing up at various
government conferences and trying to connect the Geeks to Wonks.
GovLoop.com
One of the most successful examples of Government 2.0 is
GovLoop.com, an online community created for and by government
employees, that has brought together more than 16,500 members of
the government community. Dubbed by some as a Facebook for
Government, GovLoop brings together government employees from the
United States and other nations to discuss ideas, share best
practices, and create a community dedicated to the betterment of
government.
In July 2009, GovLoop celebrated its one-year anniversary in style
under the theme Summer of Gov, with parties in Washington, D.C.,
and San Francisco, as well as a virtual party in Second Life. In
San Francisco, GovLoop teamed with Gov 2.0 Club to host a gathering
of more than 100 peopleranging from City of San Francisco
officials, Yahoo!, and YouTube. In Second Life, GovLoop member
Marie Crandell of Rocoza Designs designed a special GovLoop island,
where GovLoop held a celebration that included speeches on the
power of virtual worlds by such experts as Eric Hackathorn of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAAs) Virtual
Worlds. In Washington, D.C., GovLoop coordinated with iStrategy
Labs and the recent D.C. Apps for Community contest to host a
gathering of more than 300 government innovators from Department of
Defense (DOD), Department of Homeland Security, AOL, the
Washington, D.C., government, and MixedInk.
In only one year, GovLoop has begun to smash the ageold silos that
existed between federal agencies by facilitating dialogue that has
never existed before between state, local, and international
government agencies. Members range from chief information officers,
White House political appointees, and city managers to brilliant
government innovators across all levels of U.S. government. Since
its launch, GovLoop members have written more than 1,500 blogs,
started 1,200 discussions, posted more than 450 events, shared more
than 4,000 photos, and created more than 200 videos.
The creation of a new way for government to connect and solve
problems has caught fire. GovLoop has been featured in the
Washington Post, Huffington Post, MSNBC, and Government Executive,
and has been awarded the Federal 100 Award, 2009 Bethesda AFCEA
Government-Wide Initiatives Excellence Award, and the 2009 ACT
Intergovernmental Solutions Award.
Most importantly, GovLoop members have started connecting in ways
to improve government. The open, accelerated flow of information on
GovLoop has led to the rapid replication of ideas and best
practices across all levels of government, and has improved
government operations and performance. Indeed, GovLoop members have
already accomplished many notable feats.
- Developed a burgeoning Acquisition 2.0 movement to employ
innovative acquisition methods. Led by Mary Davie of GSA, this
GovLoop group has had rich dialogue on reinventing acquisitions
with parties ranging from DOD insiders, small company CEOs, and
graduate school trainers (www.govloop.com/group/acquisition20).
- Been the leading source of government input into the Obama
Administrations Open Government Memo. GovLoop members provide a
range of ideas to promote Gov 2.0, ranging from awards programs to
collaborative governance structures (www.whitehouse.gov/open).
- Established a repository of best practices on social media
policies, government hiring, and government Twitter use. Rather
than reinvent the wheel, government agencies are learning from
other agencies that have already succeeded on these issues and
developed lessons learned. Visit Best of GovLoop to find these and
other discussions (www. govloop.com/page/best-ofgovloop).
- Brought together international government leaders from across
the globe, including Canada, United Kingdom, Brazil, and Australia,
who are working on similar issues. An example of GovLoop groups
includes Canadian Government 2.0
(www.govloop.com/group/canadiangovernment20).
- Created the first-ever Tweetbook summarizing all the messages
on Twitter at the Open Government and Innovations Conference into a
concise e-book for readers worldwide. Led by GovLoop member Andy
Krzmarzick, this e-book was created with the help of more than 10
GovLoop volunteers who came together in a week to summarize the
knowledge shared via Twitter at the conference
(www.opengovinnovations.com)
- Launched a top-rated podcast Gov 2.0 Radio (gov20radio.com)
that now has thousands of listeners worldwide and guests such as
Tim OReilly and Craig Newmark.
Looking Forward
Personally, it has been amazing to watch the ecosystem of
government develop at GovLoop. People who would have never met in
real life are connecting and learning from each other. In the
Acquisition 2.0 Gov-Loop group, some of the top participants
include a GSA employee, DOD IT program manager, CEO of a social
networking platform, and a graduate school trainer. Additionally,
it has begun to bring government innovators together. When you see
a green GovLoop Bureaucrats Need Not Apply lanyard in the hallway,
you know a like-minded innovator is in your path.
The beauty of government is that we are all in it togetherand we
are not competitors. If a federal, state, or local agency is
working on a problem, another agency has probably already
researched the problem and found a solution. With the power of
sites such as Gov-Loop, employees can learn from each other rather
than reinvent the wheel. In the end, they are learning and working
together to create a faster, quicker, cheaper, and more effective
government.
While the tipping point may have been reached, Gov 2.0 still has a
long way to go. Early adopters and many government agencies are
still just dipping their fingers into the space. With these new
technologies and new generation of government employees, there is a
huge cultural shift that must take place to move from a
hierarchical-based structure to a networked approach in which good
ideas rise and are implemented regardless of where they come from.
However, it is clear that in solving government problems, we should
leverage the wisdom of the millions of citizens, government
employees, and their past experiences.