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The “Undo” Button
As much as the Internet provides us with opportunity and connects us to our friends and family across the globe, it also has a dark side. And I don’t just mean the “Silk Roads” out there. Instead, I’m thinking of the idea that the Internet isn’t very forgiving. What you post is out there forever…
Read MorePublic service in the millennial generation
Something we’ve talked a lot about in our TechTables, and something we read a lot about in the news, is the tech talent gap in government. There is a general consensus that government has a hard time recruiting high-level tech experts. Well, as it turns out, this isn’t the only demographic that the federal (and…
Read MoreWhy Paid Family Leave is So Important
With the release of The New York Times’ damning but, to be fair, disputed portrayal of the work environment at Amazon, the cultures cultivated at tech companies have been in the spotlight this week. This particular piece paints a dismal picture of life at a thriving tech company, but what is perhaps most unfortunate is…
Read MoreBail tech?
It seems that every week, a new viral video from HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver makes its way into the (inter)national discussion about very serious issues. And it appears that the show’s airing its treatment even has some immediate real-world impact – the “John Oliver effect” (TIME). The list of topics Last Week has addressed…
Read MoreSmart Cities and Civic Tech
Civic tech has a new medium and it is taking shape in local city offices. Metropolitan areas across the country are participating in a step toward innovation. These “smart cities” are defined as developed urban areas that use digital technologies or information and communication technologies to improve city life and engaged community members.1 As the…
Read MorePolitics, Party Loyalty, and Punishment
Congress, and the government as a whole, is not perfect. We know that and have discussed it in many of our posts. We’ve talked about how Congress only passed 4% of the bills introduced in the 114th session, how even when they do pass bills they tend to be fluff laws naming federal post offices, and how compromise…
Read MoreWhat’s the Next for the Sharing Economy?
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve participated in the sharing economy. You’ve hitched a ride with Uber or Lyft or earned some extra cash putting a second bedroom on Airbnb. To be sure, there are many benefits to the sharing economy: on-demand services, the ability to make money off unused items, employing the underemployed,…
Read MoreHow Much $10 Billion in Campaign Spending Really Is
On Monday, the New York Times published a shocking article predicting a record number of campaign spending this election cycle and highlighting Federal Election Commission Chair Ann Ravel’s admission of the agency’s inability to curb this spending due to gridlock. What was particularly surprising to me was the amount of money that is predicted to be spent: a whopping…
Read MoreWhat I Learned at the Women Who Tech TeleSummit
On Wednesday, I participated in the Women Who Tech TeleSummit. Though mostly targeted towards women working in technical fields or those interested in launching their own start-up, the conference offered a lot of great advice for organizations and companies hoping to increase their diversity, gender and otherwise. I attended three of the sessions: Breaking the…
Read MoreCode.7370: Reducing Recidivism, Increasing Diversity, and Addressing the Tech Talent Gap
In the past year, we’ve seen a renewed focus in Silicon Valley on improving the diversity of the tech workforce. For the most part, this effort has been focused on women and minorities and, at many firms, on veterans. Now, we see some tech companies taking this a step further through a program to hire…
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