technology
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Accountability and the Challenge of Government Technology Reform
The concept of an “accountability sink” can help us understand why some government processes move so slowly and what steps we can take to change them. Continue reading
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Conway’s Law and the challenge of building software in government
Good news, you’ve discovered that Conway’s Law is what is causing issues with your government software development team. Bad news is the typical approach to addressing the problem doesn’t work well inside government. Continue reading
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Patience is a Virtue: The Smart Approach to AI Investments for Government
By improving how they collect, clean, and govern data, agencies can ensure they are ready to leverage the best AI tools when the time is right. Continue reading
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Software Delivery Platforms: The Original Low-Code Platforms
At their core, both low-code platforms and software delivery platforms share a common goal: making it easier to build digital solutions that meet the needs of users. Continue reading
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Using generative AI to transform policy into code
Last week, I took part in BenCon 2024 — an annual two-day conference hosted by the Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University focused on charting the course to excellence in digital benefits delivery. Continue reading
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AI Can’t Save Us By Itself
Who do we hold accountable for decisions that get made or actions that are taken by government when some part of the decision making has been ceded to an algorithm or an AI model? Continue reading
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Parking Signs and Possible Futures for LLMs in Government
Government agencies adopting generative AI tools seems inevitable at this point. But there is more than one possible future for how agencies use generative AI to simplify complex government information. Continue reading
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Preparing for an AI Future in Government Service Delivery
When we hear industry observers and AI experts tell us today that governments can reap the benefits of the latest wave of AI innovation if they organize and prepare their data, they are right – but this is not a new insight. This has always been true. Continue reading
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Additional Guardrails for AI use in Government
Any use of AI or automation in government, particularly as it relates to benefit determinations or claims, needs to be accompanied by policy guardrails that create strong disincentives for improper denials of claims for benefits. Continue reading
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Banning Generative AI Won’t Work
Blanket technology bans spawn shadow IT, and incentivize agencies to hide their use of new technology for fear of having it taken away. Continue reading
About Me
I am the former Chief Data Officer for the City of Philadelphia. I also served as Director of Government Relations at Code for America, and as Director of the State of Delaware’s Government Information Center. For about six years, I served in the General Services Administration’s Technology Transformation Services (TTS), and helped pioneer their work with state and local governments. I also led platform evangelism efforts for TTS’ cloud platform, which supports over 30 critical federal agency systems.
Civic Innovations 