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Lakers, North Stars and…Vikings? Oh my!
08 February 2012 7:43 AM | 3 CommentsThe chatter is getting noisier. They are going to raise our taxes! That RICH guy is going to get richer! Our public schools don’t get any money – but that dumb team does! I don’t care – let the team leave! However, Minnesota history indicates...
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Your help is needed to close one hole in Minnesota safety net
06 February 2012 3:11 PM | No CommentsYou may have read about Charles Van Heuveln in Jon Tevlin’s Star Tribune column a few weeks ago. A good program that benefits people with disabilities — Medical Assistance for Employed People with Disabilities (MA-EPD) — has a loop hole in it. A hole that...
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Theater of Public Policy
02 February 2012 12:19 PM | No CommentsPolitical satire and improvisational theater have a long history in the Twin Cities thanks in part to Dudley Riggs. Huge Improv Theater on 30th and Lyndale in south Minneapolis is adding a new chapter to this legacy with the Theater of Public Policy. In partnership...
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Author Archive
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Vision Check
Posted on January 9, 2012 | 1 CommentI am currently working with the senior leaders of an organization, to craft a vision that will guide them over the next five years. I was leading some group sessions to learn more about one of the organization’s key teams, when that team’s leader confronted... -
The Talk
Posted on November 22, 2011 | 1 CommentAs we ease into the last weeks of the year, Americans everywhere will engage in a ritual as predictable as the growing darkness, and too often as pointless as shopping at midnight this Friday. Across this great land, in organizations of all sorts and sizes,... -
Why? Because…
Posted on October 16, 2011 | No Comments“When I give an order, the last thing I want to hear is, `Why.’ The only thing I want to hear is, `Yes, sir!” The statement came from a seasoned sheriff, at a gathering of senior law enforcement leaders. His peers rushed to agree. A... -
Remembering
Posted on September 12, 2011 | No CommentsI spent the afternoon of September 11, 2011 remembering September 11, 2001, in the company of thousands attending the Minnesota Remembers program in Eden Prairie. Governor Mark Dayton, Senator Amy Klobuchar, and Commissioner of Public Safety Mona Dohman spoke about the courage and service of... -
From the IT Ashes
Posted on August 4, 2011 | No CommentsMy computer broke down last week, a trusty but aging laptop reduced to a flat blue screen by some vandal code (and my own negligence regarding the software intended to prevent it). My backup computer, a slightly newer desktop model, succumbed to the same fate, and... -
Sandlot Mentorships
Posted on June 27, 2011 | No CommentsMentorship programs are sprouting like sunflowers. They aren’t new, but it seems that this year has brought a steady increase in inquiries from senior leaders – from sheriffs to nursing home administrators – about the best ways to promote mentorship in their organizations. Typically, they... -
Tell Me a Story
Posted on May 17, 2011 | 3 CommentsI just finished Twin Cities author Nick Tasler’s excellent book, The Impulse Factor. I learned a great deal about how to harness my impulsive drive to make more prudent decisions. Tasler writes really well, combining relevant research with compelling stories, in the same way that... -
Leadership Values for Public Service
Posted on April 14, 2011 | 1 CommentTough economic times prompt tough debates about the role of government and the efficacy of public institutions and employees. Constructive debate is grounded in reason and intent on addressing tough problems. Good discourse sheds light and informs wise action. Too often, though, our public discourse... -
Bully!
Posted on March 9, 2011 | No CommentsAt a recent seminar break, a group of parents clustered around, all with kids in those middle grades, 5-8. Many of those kids are being picked on in school. Because I do a preponderance of the talking during the seminar, I try to listen quietly... -
Asking the right questions about public employees
Posted on February 11, 2011 | 1 CommentAs the realities of public budgets permeate the political consciousness, rhetoric about public employees is heating up. The StarTribune recently juxtaposed essays by Mark Haveman, executive director of the Minnesota Taxpayers Union, and Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor. At one level, the authors...
