www.socialsecurity.gov

>> THERE'S QUITE A BIT OF TECHNOLOGY GOING ON HERE.
I AM VIDEOTAPING MYSELF. APPARENTLY, I'M GOING TO LIVE
TWEET FROM UP HERE. THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON
AT THE MOMENT. BUT THAT'S OPEN
AND INNOVATIVE GOVERNMENT. WELL, I'M DELIGHTED
TO BE HERE TODAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME.
AND IT IS REALLY A PLEASURE TO BE HERE AT SOCIAL SECURITY AND
TO CELEBRATE THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN GOING ON HERE WITH FRANK
AND HIS TEAM, DARLYNDA, AND OTHERS WHO HAVE BEEN WORKING ON
THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN OPEN GOVERNMENT OF AN OPEN AND
STRATEGIC PLAN FOR SOCIAL SECURITY, TO THINK ABOUT HOW IN
THE 21ST CENTURY TO MAKE SOCIAL SECURITY MORE TRANSPARENT, MORE
PARTICIPATORY, AND COLLABORATIVE REALLY AS A WAY IN THINKING
ABOUT NOT ONLY HOW TO FULFILL THE PRESIDENT'S DAY ONE
MEMORANDUM EMBEDDING THESE THREE VALUES INTO THE WAY THAT WE
WORK, BUT TO REALLY THINKING ABOUT HOW TO BRING INNOVATION TO
THE WAY THAT THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FUNCTIONS AND THE
WAY THAT IT DELIVERS SERVICES TO AMERICAN CITIZENS.
FRANK JUST TOLD ME 60 MILLION CITIZENS WHO ARE SERVED EACH
MONTH THROUGH SOCIAL SECURITY REPRESENTING ABOUT 20 TO 25% OF
THE FEDERAL BUDGET. SO A TREMENDOUS FOOTPRINT IN
TERMS OF THE RELATIONSHIP TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
IT IS THEREFORE SO IMPORTANT THAT WE ARE HERE TODAY TO
CELEBRATE AS A CHAMPION, THE WORK THAT'S GOING ON AND THAT
WILL BE GOING ON TO THINK ABOUT HOW TO DRIVE INNOVATION INTO THE
WORKINGS OF THE ADMINISTRATION AS IN THE REST OF GOVERNMENT.
AND THIS IS REALLY AS WE THINK ABOUT INNOVATION, WE THINK ABOUT
IT DEFINED BY THESE THREE VALUES OF TRANSPARENCY, PARTICIPATION
AND COLLABORATION, A MORE OPEN AND INNOVATIVE WAY OF WORKING,
NOT THROUGH NEW LAWS, NOT THROUGH NEW REGULATIONS AND NOT
EVEN THROUGH NEW BUDGETS AS YOU HEARD THE FOLKS FROM
DOT ALREADY MENTIONED. IT IS NOT ABOUT HOW WE SPEND
MORE MONEY, IN FACT IT'S ABOUT HOW WE SAVE MONEY IN THE PROCESS
BY DOING SMALL THINGS OFTEN ENABLED BY THE TECHNOLOGY THAT
ALEX TOLD US ABOUT TODAY -- THE SOCIAL MEDIA, THE NEW TOOLS THAT
ARE CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AND CHEAPLY AND OFTEN FREELY
AVAILABLE -- THAT ALLOW US TO SERVE CITIZENS BETTER, IN THE
WAY FOR EXAMPLE THAT IMMIGRATION HAS DONE BY CREATING A SERVICE
TO PROVIDE UPDATES BY A TEXT MESSAGE AND BY E-MAIL TO THE
PEOPLE THAT IT SERVES. AND IN THE PROCESS, A PROJECT
THAT TOOK NOT FIVE YEARS, NOT TEN YEARS OF TRANSFORMATION, BUT
90 DAYS IS NOW ABLE TO GET 140,000 PEOPLE ENROLLED, SENDING
OUT 124,000 TEXT MESSAGES, MILLION E-MAILS, AND IS NOW GONE
FROM BEING ONE OF THE WORST TO BEING ONE OF THE BEST GOVERNMENT
WEBSITES IN TERMS OF THE ABILITY TO DELIVER SERVICES.
THAT'S WHY I WAS THRILLED TO HEAR THE COMMISSIONER TALK THIS
MORNING ABOUT THE OPEN GOVERNMENT FLAGSHIP INITIATIVE
TO CREATE THE VERY FIRST NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE INTERACTIVE
TOOL IN GOVERNMENT, MAINLY AS A SPANISH LANGUAGE RETIREMENT
ESTIMATOR, AND OTHER APPS THAT ARE BEING DEVELOPED HERE WITHIN
THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION. AGAIN, SMALL CHANGES THAT MAKE THE BIG SHIP OF STATE MOVE POTENTIALLY FASTER AND MORE EFFECTIVELY.
AND THE WAY WE CAN THINK ABOUT THIS, THE WAY I OFTEN DESCRIBE
THIS PROCESS OF THESE SMALL CHANGES OF WHAT WE THINK OF AS
THE OPEN AND INNOVATIVE GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE, IS
THINKING ABOUT HOW WE TAKE THE STATE INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT
THAT WE CELEBRATE FOR THE REGULARITY OF THEIR PROCEDURE,
FOR THEIR FAIRNESS, FOR THEIR KNOW HOW, FOR THE THINGS THAT WE
AS GOVERNMENT PROFESSIONALS DO BEST IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST, AND
CONNECT THOSE INSTITUTIONS TO THE SOMETIMES FREE WHEELING
ENERGY VITALITY AND INTELLIGENCE OF THE SOCIAL NETWORKS THAT WE
ALL BELONG TO OR MANY OF US OR MOST OF US IN THE ROOM I SAW
BELONG TO OR WATCH OVER THE SHOULDER AS OTHER
PEOPLE BELONG TO TODAY. WE HAVE SEEN LOTS OF EXAMPLES
FOR THIS ALREADY IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
SO WHETHER IT'S THE SPURRING OF THINGS LIKE THE CRISIS COMMONS
OR THE CRISIS COMMONS MOVEMENTS AND THE CREATION OF CRISIS
COMMONS CAMPS, PEOPLE DEVELOPING NEW APPLICATIONS, NEW SOFTWARE
TOOLS TO HELP WITH DISASTER RELIEF AND RECOVERY, WHETHER
IT'S PROJECTS THAT ALLOW PEOPLE TO SPOT AND REPORT A POTHOLE IN
THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD, OR A PROJECT FOR EXAMPLE TO REPORT, YOU KNOW
WHEN A RED LIGHT IS OUT, ALL OF THESE KINDS OF LITTLE
APPLICATIONS THAT ARE GETTING DEVELOPED, AGAIN, USING
TECHNOLOGY, BUT CONNECTING ULTIMATELY NOT TOOLS, BUT PEOPLE
TO ONE ANOTHER TO SHARE AND TRADE INTELLIGENCE AND
EXPERIENCES TO HELP IMPROVE THE WAY THE WORLD WORKS.
THE CRISIS COMMONS MOVEMENT IS ONE EXAMPLE OF HOW THIS IS
TAKING PLACE IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR IN THE WORLD OF DOT ORG.
THE QUESTION IS HOW WE BRING THIS INTO THE SPACE OF DOT GOV
MOST EFFECTIVELY AND MARRY AGAIN THIS INTELLIGENCE AND
COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION INTO THE WAY THAT WE WORK THAT
IS STILL THEN RESPECTFUL OF THE PUBLIC TRUST THAT WE HOLD.
SO THE DARPA EXAMPLE, WHEN DOD CELEBRATED THE ANNIVERSARY OF
DARPA AND DECIDED TO RUN A COMPETITION TO FIND OUT WHERE
ARE THESE TEN WEATHER BALLOONS, A VERY COMPLICATED LOGISTICS
PROBLEM, A COMPLICATED MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM, AND SANDY
PENTALAND'S TEAM AT THE MIT MEDIA LAB, IN FACT USING
SOCIAL MEDIA, ASKED PEOPLE TO HELP WITH FINDING WHERE THESE
WEATHER BALLOONS ARE USING A SERIES OF INCENTIVES AND SIMPLE
TOOLS LIKE FACEBOOK AND TWITTER, WAS ABLE IN NINE HOURS TO SOLVE
THIS INCREDIBLY COMPLICATED MATHEMATICAL LOGISTICAL PROBLEM.
AGAIN, IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THE TRANSITION NOW FROM THE DOT
ORG SPACE INTO THE DOT GOV SPACE OF USING THE INTELLIGENCE OF
PEOPLE CONNECTED THROUGH SOCIAL NETWORKS TO HELP US SOLVE
PROBLEMS IN NEW WAYS. AND ULTIMATELY THAT IS WHAT OPEN
GOVERNMENT IS ABOUT. IT'S ABOUT MAKING GOVERNMENT
WORK BETTER, BUT IT'S ABOUT EMPOWERING PEOPLE AND
STRENGTHENING OUR DEMOCRACY THROUGH THESE THREE VALUES OF
TRANSPARENCY, PARTICIPATION AND COLLABORATION.
TRANSPARENCY, AS YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU HEARD THE COMMISSIONER
CELEBRATE THE OVER 20 NEW DATA SETS THAT ARE BEING PUT UP ON
LINE NOW THROUGH DATA.GOV ON THE SOCIAL SECURITY WEBSITE THAT ARE
ABOUT MAKING THE DATA AND THE WORKINGS OF GOVERNMENT
MORE OPEN. WE HAVE LOTS OF PLATFORMS THAT ARE DOING THIS, WHETHER DATA.GOV OR THE TRACKING OF DOLLARS BEING SPENT IN THE RECOVERY, THROUGH RECOVERY.GOV, OR THE TRACKING OF GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS THROUGH USA SPENDING OR THE NEW I.T USA SPENDING DASHBOARD THAT TRACKS THE $81 BILLION OF TEXT SPEND THAT'S GOING ON ACROSS THE  GOVERNMENT.
PART OF THE REASON FOR BEING TRANSPARENT IS IN ORDER TO HELP
THE PUBLIC AND OURSELVES HOLD OURSELVES ACCOUNTABLE FOR HOW WE
ARE SPENDING MONEY SO THAT WE DON'T WASTE TAXPAYER DOLLARS,
BUT SO THAT WE CAN FIND OPPORTUNITIES TO REDUCE THE
COSTS IN THESE TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES OF THE WAY THAT WE ARE
DOING BUSINESS. SO RIGHT NOW THE CIO'S OFFICE IS
MARRYING THIS I.T TRACKING SYSTEM OF IT.USA SPENDING THAT
IS SHEDDING SOME LIGHT ON WHERE I.T SPENDING IS TAKING PLACE
WITH AN INTERPERSONAL PROCESS AND A COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE
CIO COUNCIL AND THE AGENCIES ON FINDING WAYS, INNOVATIVE WAYS,
OF BRINGING DOWN THOSE COSTS OF WHERE GOVERNMENT IS SPENDING
MONEY ON I.T SERVICES. AND THAT'S GOING ON
ACROSS THE GOVERNMENT. IT'S USING TRANSPARENCY AS A WAY
AGAIN TO HOLD THIS ACCOUNTABLE TO REDUCE FRAUD,
WASTE, AND ABUSE. BUT TRANSPARENCY HAS THE ADDED
VALUE OF HELPING US NOT ONLY TO HOLD GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE, BUT
TO ACHIEVE OUR CORE MISSION BETTER, WHATEVER IT IS THAT WE
ARE TRYING TO DO. SO IT'S HELPING US FOR EXAMPLE
WITHIN HHS, SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE SEEN THE NEW
HEALTH CARE.GOV SITE. IT'S GOVERNMENT PUTTING OUT AN
UNPRECEDENTED DATA SET ABOUT BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
INSURANCE OPTIONS AROUND THE COUNTRY, ENABLING THE PUBLIC TO
TAKE THIS DATA THROUGH THIS SIMPLE TOOL CREATED THROUGH
HEALTH CARE.GOV AND HAVE THE ONLY COMPREHENSIVE PLACE YOU CAN
LOOK TO ACTUALLY FIND OUT ABOUT INSURANCE OPTIONS THAT ARE
AVAILABLE AND OPEN TO YOU, WITH HONEST, FRANK INFORMATION NOT
SUPPORTED BY ADVERTISING, NOT PAID FOR BY INSURERS, BUT IN
FACT PAID FOR EXCLUSIVELY BY THE GOVERNMENT PROVIDING IMPARTIAL
AND FAIR ADVICE. AND WE KNOW THAT THIS TOOL IS
WORKING BECAUSE ACCORDING TO HHS REPORTS OVER 77% OF PEOPLE
COMING TO THE SITE ARE CLICKING ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE
INSURANCE CALCULATOR TO ACTUALLY USE THE TOOL TO ACTUALLY FIGURE
OUT WHAT OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE TO THEM.
SO THIS KIND OF DATA TRANSPARENCY PROJECT HELPS TO
ACHIEVE THE CORE MISSION OF HHS, NAMELY IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF
HEALTH CARE, BENDING THE HEALTH CARE COST CURVE BY BRINGING
TRANSPARENCY TO THE INSURANCE MARKETPLACE, GIVING PEOPLE WHO
WOULD NEVER HAVE HAD ACCESS TO THE INFORMATION POTENTIALLY
LITERALLY LIFE SAVING INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO GET
INSURANCE COVERAGE IN THEIR COMMUNITIES, OR THE WORK THAT
THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR IS DOING, SPEAKING OF LIFE SAVING,
OF CREATING A DATA, A REPOSITORY INSTEAD OF TOOLS ABOUT
ENFORCEMENT DATA, SO YOU CAN GO ON HERE AND FIND OUT ABOUT MIND
SAFETY DATA AND CHEMICAL EXPOSURE DATA AND MAKE BETTER
AND SAFER CHOICES AS AN EMPLOYEE, BUT ALSO BRINGING
TRANSPARENCY TO THE WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT, WHICH IS ACTUALLY
ENABLING PEOPLE THEN TO COMPETE AMONG WORK PLACES FOR GREATER
SAFETY, AND TO BRING SHAME TO THOSE WHO ARE NOT BRINGING
SAFETY TO THE WORKPLACE, AND TO THEN AGAIN ALLOW THOSE PEOPLE
WHO ARE TO CELEBRATE WHAT THEY ARE DOING, AGAIN TRYING TO USE
TRANSPARENCY AS A WAY TO ACHIEVE THE CORE MISSION OF PROTECTING
WORK LIFE SAFETY. BUT TRANSPARENCY BY
ITSELF IS NOT ENOUGH. AND WHAT WE SEE GOING ON AROUND
THE GOVERNMENT IS THE MARRYING OF TRANSPARENCY TO EFFORTS TO
GET PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE WITH AND ENGAGE WITH THAT DATA.
I LOVE THE EXPRESSION THAT I THINK WAS FIRST COINED BY THE
INNOVATOR STEWART BRAND, HE SAID TECH LOVED DATA LIVES LONGER, A
SHORT WAY OF SAYING THAT WHEN WE TAKE DATA INFORMATION LIKE THE
OPEN EI WEBSITE THAT'S BEING CREATED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF
ENERGY THAT PUTS OUT ENERGY DATA AND INFORMATION, AND WE MARRY IT
TO A PARTICIPATION OPPORTUNITY THAT ALLOWS THE AMERICAN PUBLIC
TO CONTRIBUTE BACK INFORMATION ABOUT HOW THEY ARE USING ENERGY
ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, THAT WE ACTUALLY ARE ABLE TO REALLY
GET INSIGHT INTO THE STATE OF ENERGY USAGE IN THE COUNTRY.
SO MANY AGENCIES AND DEPARTMENTS INCLUDING SOCIAL SECURITY HAS
CREATED AN OPEN GOVERNMENT WEBSITE, SSA.GOV/OPEN, INCLUDING
AN IDEA SCALE BRAINSTORMING SITE THAT'S ALLOWING THE PUBLIC TO
CONTRIBUTE GOOD IDEAS FOR HOW TO ACTUALLY MAKE THE AGENCY WORK
BETTER, MORE EFFECTIVELY, MORE OPEN IN MORE INNOVATIVE WAYS.
AND AGAIN, IT'S MARRYING THAT TRANSPARENCY OPPORTUNITY OF
BEING OPEN ABOUT OUR DATA, OPEN ABOUT THE WAY THAT WE WORK WITH
THE OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO CONTRIBUTE BACK GOOD IDEAS THAT
HELPS US TO DO THINGS BETTER. SO WE ARE SEEING THE
PROLIFERATION OF LOTS AND LOTS OF WHAT I CALL OPEN POLICY
MAKING OPPORTUNITIES, WHETHER IT'S INVITING THE PUBLIC TO
COMMENT ON AND GIVE INPUT ON THE SOCIAL SECURITY OPEN GOVERNMENT
PLAN, OR YESTERDAY THE NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE ASKED
THE PUBLIC TO HELP WITH DEVISING HOW WE SHOULD SPEND $1.76
BILLION IN FUNDING FOR NANOTECH RND, OR THE REQUEST LAST WEEK
FROM THE CYBER SECURITY COORDINATOR TO GET HELP WITH
DEVISING OUR CYBER SECURITY STRATEGY.
WE ARE SEEING ALL ACROSS THE GOVERNMENT THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY
TO ENGAGE PEOPLE IN MAKING POLICY ONLINE, FASTER AND
EARLIER IN THE PROCESS THAN WE EVER WOULD HAVE DONE BEFORE.
SO WE ARE NOT ONLY DRAFTING THINGS AND ASKING FOR COMMENT
AFTER THE FACT WHEN WE FRANKLY DON'T NECESSARILY NEED OR WANT
COMMON AT THAT POINT, BUT BEFORE WE DRAFT THE POLICIES, BEFORE WE
CREATE THE OPEN GOVERNMENT PLANS, IN ORDER TO GET GOOD
IDEAS THAT WILL ACTUALLY INFORM THE DRAFTING.
OTHER EXCITING INNOVATIONS TAKING PLACE IN THE
PARTICIPATION SPACE NOW, THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES JUST ANNOUNCED
AND YOU'LL SEE UNVEILED NEXT WEEK THE NEW FEDERAL REGISTER.
SO IN TERMS OF THE PLACE YOU GO TO GET PARTICIPATION
OPPORTUNITIES IN GOVERNMENT, THE FEDERAL REGISTER IS WHERE 320
PEOPLE, MILLION PEOPLE GO, THE MOST READ
PUBLICATION IN GOVERNMENT. IF YOU'VE EVER LOOKED AT THE
FEDERAL REGISTER WHICH I'M SURE EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM ALREADY
HAS, WE KNOW THAT YOU PRACTICALLY NEED A LAW DEGREE TO
KNOW HOW TO READ IT. IT'S NOT EXACTLY
SCINTILLATING READING. WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE
UNVEILED NEXT WEEK IS SOMETHING THAT WILL LOOK TO YOU MORE LIKE
THE WASHINGTON POST, THE NEW YORK TIMES AND A MAGAZINE THAN
LIKE THE FEDERAL REGISTER THAT YOU'VE SEEN BEFORE.
HOPEFULLY MAKING GOVERNMENT MORE ACCESSIBLE, MORE OPEN.
AND IN EDUCATING THE AMERICAN PUBLIC ABOUT MORE WAYS TO GET
INVOLVED WHETHER IT'S COMMENTING ON ROLE MAKINGS OR PARTICIPATING
IN SOME OF THESE OPEN POLICY MAKING ACTIVITIES.
AND FINALLY, I THINK ONE OF THE NEW AND EXCITING AREAS WHERE WE
ARE DOING A LOT OF WORK THIS YEAR IS IN THINKING ABOUT HOW TO
USE SOME OF THESE NEW MEDIA, NOT JUST THE FACEBOOKS, THE
TWITTERS, THE KIND OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND SOCIAL
NETWORKS, BUT WHAT ARE SOMETIMES CALLED EXPERT AND
PROFESSIONAL NETWORKS, BECAUSE FOR EVERY FACEBOOK THAT'S OUT
THERE THERE'S ANOTHER PROFESSIONAL NETWORK THAT PEOPLE
ARE USING IN SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL, IN LEGAL COMMUNITIES
TO CONNECT PROFESSIONALS TAPPING INTO THOSE NETWORKS TO GET
EXPERT ADVISE IN THE WAY THAT WE MAKE POLICY.
SO, FINALLY, IN ADDITION TO THIS TRANSPARENCY AND PARTICIPATION,
THE MOST PROBABLY IMPORTANT WORK THAT WE ARE DOING AND THAT WE
ARE CELEBRATING TODAY IS THE WORK THAT'S GOING ON ACROSS THE
GOVERNMENT IN THE AREA THAT WE CALL COLLABORATION.
WHERE PARTICIPATION FOCUSES ON USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO GET GOOD
IDEAS INTO GOVERNMENT, COLLABORATION FOCUSES ON PUSHING
PROBLEMS, CHALLENGES AND QUESTIONS OUT TO THE PRIVATE
SECTOR TO OTHER AREAS OF GOVERNMENT TO ARTICULATE OUR
QUESTIONS AND TO GET NEW AND INNOVATIVE WAYS OF HELP
TO SOLVE THOSE PROBLEMS. SO IT'S NOT JUST PARTICIPATING
IN THE TRADITIONAL CHANNELS OF RULE MAKING, FOR EXAMPLE, BUT
ACTUALLY GETTING PEOPLE TO DEVISE INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES,
LIKE FOR EXAMPLE THE VIDEO COMPETITION THAT WE
HEARD SPOKEN OF TODAY. OTHER AGENCIES HAVE STARTED
EXPERIMENTING AS HHS DID WITH THE USE OF A COMPETITION TO
DRIVE AWARENESS AROUND HAND WASHING AND H1-N1.
BY LAUNCHING A COMPETITION AND GIVING A PRIZE OF $2,500, THEY
GOT 200 SUBMISSIONS. IF THEY HAD COMMISSIONED A
MADISON AVENUE AD AGENCY TO DEVELOP 200 DRAFTS OF PUBLIC
SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS THIS WOULD HAVE COST MILLIONS, IT WOULD NOT
HAVE BEEN SOMETHING THAT EVER COULD HAVE EVER BEEN DONE
BECAUSE OF THE PROHIBITIVE COSTS.
BUT FOR $2,500, THEY NOT ONLY GOT 200 SUBMISSIONS OF
UNBELIEVABLY HIGH QUALITY, HIGH PRODUCTION VALUE VIDEOS, BUT
THEY ACTUALLY ENGAGED THE PUBLIC, NOT THE SAME PUBLIC THAT
WOULD COMMENT ON A RULE MAKING, BUT THE PUBLIC THAT WANTS TO
MAKE A VIDEO THAT HAS CREATIVE CAPACITY TO ACTUALLY ENGAGE WITH
THE AGENCY AND PARTICIPATE IN THINKING ABOUT HOW TO SOLVE A
VEXING PROBLEM, NAMELY HOW TO GET PEOPLE TO WASH THEIR HANDS,
YOU KNOW, IN A CRISIS LIKE SWINE FLU.
SO THE COLLABORATION AGENDA IS VERY MUCH ABOUT SOLVING PROBLEMS
TOGETHER IN NEW WAYS. YOU'VE HEARD THIS WEEK ABOUT THE
RELAUNCH OF THE SAVE AWARD WHICH THE WHITE HOUSE DID LAST YEAR
GENERATING 38,000 IDEAS, ONE OF WHICH WAS FROM
YOUR COMMISSIONER. SORRY, UNFORTUNATELY
NOT THE WINNING ONE. BUT AS HE SAID HE'S GOING TO TRY
AGAIN THIS YEAR AND HE HAS HIS CHANCE.
AND NOW THE SAVE AWARD IS UP AND RUNNING ONLINE.
YOU CAN GET THERE FROM THE WHITE HOUSE WEBSITE FROM THE OMB
WEBSITE THAT WILL PROVIDE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY
CONTRIBUTE GOOD IDEAS TO THINKING ABOUT HOW TO SAVE MONEY
IN GOVERNMENT AND TO HAVE THOSE IDEAS IMPLEMENTED.
THE VETERAN'S BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION RAN A COMPETITION
AND THEY HAVE RUN SIMILAR ONES TO THE VETERAN'S HEALTH
ADMINISTRATION TO ASK THE VERY SPECIFIC QUESTION NOT HOW DO WE
SAVE MONEY GENERALLY, BUT HOW DO WE DO THE VERY SPECIFIC THING OF
BRINGING DOWN THE BACKLOG IN VETERAN'S BENEFIT'S CLAIMS?
LAST AUGUST THEY LAUNCHED THAT COMPETITION, AND WITHIN THREE
MONTHS, THEY HAD OF THEIR 19,000 EMPLOYEES ACROSS 57 REGIONAL
OFFICES, THEY HAD 7,000 PARTICIPATING, SUBMITTING 3,000
IDEAS WHICH WERE THEN WINNOWED TO THE 10 WINNING IDEAS, THE
REPRESENTATIVES OF WHICH WHO CAME TO MEET THE SECRETARY AND
WHOSE IDEAS ARE BEING IMPLEMENTED NOW IN THE VA.
INCLUDING THIS SUMMER THE LAUNCH OF A PROJECT TO PUT ONLINE ONE
OF THEIR MOST IMPORTANT MEDICAL FORMS THEREBY CUTTING BACK
VASTLY IN THE PROCESSING TIME. AND ACCORDING TO THE VA, NOT
ONLY SPEEDING UP THE PROCESS OF AND THE ACCESSIBILITY OF THAT
INFORMATION, BUT ALSO REDUCING ON THE POTENTIAL COST OF
RETROFITTING BUILDINGS THAT HAVE HAD TO BE REBUILT TO MANAGE THE
SAGGING WEIGHT OF PAPER PILES THAT THE VA IS ACCUMULATING,
REDUCING ON THOSE PAPER PILES AND POTENTIALLY AGAIN NOT ONLY
SAVING HUGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY, BUT DOING WHAT THE VA IS MEANT
TO DO, WHICH IS DELIVERING SERVICES TO VETERAN'S COMING
BACK FROM THE FRONT WHO ARE ENTITLED TO THOSE SERVICES AND
WHO ARE ENTITLED TO THEM QUICKLY.
THAT PROJECT I MIGHT ADD COSTS THE VA, THEY USED A PIECE OF
SOFTWARE THAT COSTS $2,000 AND INVOLVED ONE EMPLOYEE IN
DEVELOPING THE PROJECT, NOT EVEN FULL-TIME.
SO IT IS NOT A DIFFICULT THING TO DO THIS KIND OF OUTREACH THAT
OPENS UP AND UNLEASHES THE CREATIVE POTENTIAL OF EMPLOYEES
ALL ACROSS AN ORGANIZATION, WHO BECAUSE THEY WORK IN THE FRONT
LINES OF SURVEY CITIZENS OFTEN HAVE THE BEST IDEAS, FAR BETTER
THAN PEOPLE SITTING IN WASHINGTON.
FINALLY, COLLABORATION IS NOT ONLY FOCUSED ON COLLABORATING
ACROSS AND WITHIN GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS, BUT ALSO
COLLABORATING WITH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE IN DEVELOPING INNOVATIVE
SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS. AGAIN WITHOUT NEW LAWS, WITHOUT
NEW BUDGETS, BUT IN NEW AND INNOVATIVE WAYS THAT WE HAVEN'T
THOUGHT OF BEFORE. HHS HAS PUT OUT AN UNPRECEDENTED
AMOUNT OF INFORMATION. ITS COMMUNITY HEALTH DATA SET,
ABOUT OBESITY, ABOUT SMOKING, ABOUT HELPFUL EATING
ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THEY THEN, THREE MONTHS LATER,
NOT EVEN, LAUNCHED AN EVENT AT THE INSTITUTES OF MEDICINE BACK
IN JUNE AND SHOWCASED 15 NEW APPLICATIONS, SOFTWARE TOOLS
THAT HAD BEEN DEVELOPED BY INNOVATORS USING THAT DATA THAT
ARE GAME CHANGING APPLICATIONS FOR THE BENEFIT.
AGAIN, THIS STRATEGY OF IMPROVING HEALTH CARE, IMPROVING
THE DELIVERY OF HEALTH CARE SERVICES AND HEALTHFULNESS
AWARENESS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.
ONE OF THOSE PICTURED ON THE RIGHT THERE IS JUST AN EMBLEM
FOR THE (SIC) ASMOPOLIS PROJECT WHICH IS A SIMPLE TOOL THAT
CONNECTS GPS TRACKERS TO AN ASTHMA INHALER AND PRODUCES AN
ANONYMIZED MAP OF ASTHMA INCIDENTS ACROSS THE UNITED
STATES, THEREBY ALLOWING INFORMATION AND EVIDENCE, REAL
EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE TO DRIVE INVESTMENT AND FUNDING AND
RESEARCH PRIORITIES AND PUBLIC HEALTH PRIORITIES AROUND ASTHMA,
AGAIN INFORMED BY REAL LIVE AND DYNAMIC INFORMATION.
SO TAKE A LOOK IF YOU HAVE A CHANCE AT THE HEALTH 2.0
DEVELOPER CHALLENGE. JUST GO TO HHS.GOV/OPEN TO FIND
ACCESS TO THIS AND SOME OF THE OTHER INNOVATIONS THAT
HAVE BEEN POSTED. THAT CHALLENGE IS STILL ONGOING
WITH NEW APPLICATIONS BEING DEVELOPED.
THESE ARE NOT CUTE LITTLE IPHONE APPS.
SOMETIMES PEOPLE ASK ME, OH, YOU'RE MAKING A LITTLE IPHONE
APP, AND WHAT'S, YOU KNOW, SOME SOCIAL MEDIA THING.
THESE ARE TRULY GAME CHANGING POLICY TOOLS THAT ARE ENABLING
THE VISUALIZATION AND UNDERSTANDING OF INFORMATION
THAT IS DRIVING HEALTH CARE CHOICES ACROSS THE COUNTRY AT A
LOCAL, AT A STATE, AT A FEDERAL LEVEL IN WAYS THAT
ARE REALLY UNPRECEDENTED. IT'S PROJECTS LIKE TEXT FOR BABY
WHICH IS ANOTHER INNOVATIVE PRIVATE PUBLIC COLLABORATION
THAT'S LAUNCHED A PROGRAM TO PROVIDE PRE- AND POSTNATAL
INFORMATION TO EXPECTANT MOTHERS ABOUT CHILD, ABOUT PREGNANCY AND
ABOUT CHILD CARE THAT'S NOW REACHING SEVERAL MILLION
SUBSCRIBERS, IN COLLABORATION WITH WIRELESS CARRIERS, AGAIN
WHO ARE NOT CHARGING FOR THE SERVICE ENABLING TO DEVELOP
DELIVERY OF HEALTH CARE INFORMATION TO PEOPLE
ACROSS THE COUNTRY. AGAIN, IT DOESN'T COST ANY
MONEY, IT TOOK ONLY A FEW MONTHS TO LAUNCH, AND IT'S GAME
CHANGING IN THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTUALLY HELPED.
FINALLY WE HAVE AGENCIES WHO ARE TRYING TO BRING ALL HANDS ON
DECK USING NEW TOOLS, LIKE THE OPEN INNOVATION PORTAL,
DEVELOPED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WHICH ARE BRINGING
TOGETHER GOOD IDEAS, NOT ONLY WITHIN THE AGENCY, BUT OUTSIDE
OF IT TO SOLVE SPECIFIC PROBLEMS.
AND SOMETIMES THOSE CHALLENGES ARE BACKED BY PRIZES.
WE HEARD THE COMMISSIONER MENTION THE PRIZE GUIDANCE.
NASA JUST LAUNCHED THE NEW ROUND OF CENTENNIAL CHALLENGES USING
CONTRACTING WITH AGAIN ONE OF THESE EXPERT NETWORKS THAT HAS
200,000 HIGHLY TRAINED SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGY SAVVY
PROFESSIONALS WHO ARE HELPING TO DEVELOP SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS
THAT NASA FACES FASTER, BETTER AND CHEAPER.
WHERE THE PRIZEES ARE AGAIN, GENERATING MORE INFORMATION THAN
NASA COULD EVER PAY FOR ITSELF, AND GETTING PEOPLE TO COMPETE TO
DEVELOP THE BEST IDEAS TO SOLVE PARTICULAR PROBLEMS.
SO, ULTIMATELY, THAT'S WHAT WE ARE HERE TO DO WHICH IS TO MAKE
GOVERNMENT WORK BETTER AND MORE ACCOUNTABLY, BUT ULTIMATELY TO
EMPOWER CITIZENS TO WORK WITH GOVERNMENT TO SOLVE PROBLEMS
COLLABORATIVELY IN NEW AND INTERESTING AND CHEAPER AND
FASTER WAYS TO DO THE WORK THAT WE HAVE COME HERE TO DO, NAMELY
TO MAKE AND BUILD A BETTER MORE EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT, AND
ULTIMATELY TO BUILD A STRONGER DEMOCRACY WHERE GOVERNMENT IS
TRULY OF, BY, FOR AND WITH THE PEOPLE IN AN OPEN
GOVERNMENT ENVIRONMENT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
[APPLAUSE.] >> SO I'VE BEEN TOLD
WE HAVE A FEW MORE MINUTES. YOU'VE BEEN VERY PATIENT.
BUT IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS THAT I CAN ANSWER, OR ANY
COMMENTS THAT PEOPLE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER OR STORIES GOING ON
AROUND SOCIAL SECURITY THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE, WE WOULD
LOVE TO HEAR IF THERE'S ANY THINGS THAT PEOPLE
WANT TO CONTRIBUTE >> (LOW AUDIO) WHEN YOU OPEN
THINGS UP TO PARTICIPATION, WHEN YOU PUT MORE DATA OUT THERE FOR
TRANSPARENCY THAT IT WILL GENERATE MORE QUESTIONS, THINGS
THAT WE ARE NOT DEALING WITH, YOU KNOW, TODAY, AND WHEN WE ARE
LOOKING AT THE KINDS OF SITUATIONS THAT THE FEDERAL
BUDGET IS LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW, WITH, YOU KNOW, BIG CONCERNS
ABOUT WHAT FUNDING LEVELS ARE GOING TO BE IN 2011 AND 2012,
WHAT DO YOU SAY TO AGENCIES THAT ARE FACING THAT AND WONDERING,
YOU KNOW, HOW DO I MAKE THIS INVESTMENT NOW WHEN IT'S A
CRITICAL TIME WHEN RESOURCES ARE STARTING TO SHRINK IN ORDER TO
GET THOSE SAVINGS THAT ARE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF THIS?
>> SO IN SHORT HOW CAN WE AFFORD TO BE TRANSPARENT?
>> WELL, I SAY THAT'S ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I GET EVERY DAY.
>> I'VE HEARD THIS. SO I'VE HEARD THIS QUESTION
OFTEN AND I THINK WE DON'T -- WE DON'T -- I DON'T WANT TO
DISCOUNT, YOU KNOW, THE NOTION THAT WE CAN JUST FLIP A SWITCH
AND SUDDENLY MAKE ALL GOVERNMENT DATA OPEN.
NOT ONLY IS IT SOMETIMES HARD IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE
DE-ANONYMIZING PERSONAL INFORMATION AND THAT WE ARE
RESPECTFUL OF INFORMATION THAT CAN IMPLICATE NATIONAL SECURITY,
BUT WE KNOW THAT A LOT OF INFORMATION RESIDES ON OLD
SERVERS, IF IT RESIDES ON A SERVER AT ALL AND IT ISN'T
SIMPLY WRITTEN ON A PIECE OF PAPER SOMEWHERE IN A DRAWER.
SO THERE'S OFTEN THE HARD PROCESS OF MAKING INFORMATION
DIGITAL THAN INFORMATION THAT'S DIGITIZED, MAKING IT AVAILABLE
ONLINE, AND THEN MAKING IT AVAILABLE IN BULK
DOWNLOADABLE FORMATS. SO I DON'T WANT TO DISCOUNT
OFTEN THE COST OR THE TIME THAT CAN GO INTO THAT.
SO IT IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE BEGIN TO
CHANGE OUR WORKFLOW GOING FORWARD TO ENSURE THAT
INFORMATION THAT, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT INFORMATION PUBLIC, BEING
PUBLIC, WE TRULY MEAN PUTTING IT UP ONLINE, PUTTING IT UP ONLINE
IN BULK DOWNLOADABLE FORMATS GOING FORWARD, SO THAT BECOMES
JUST THE WAY THAT WE DO THINGS. AND WE ARE NOT THEN SPENDING
MONEY ON RETROFITTING, ESSENTIALLY INFORMATION THAT IS
STUCK IN PDF'S THAT WE THEN HAVE TO EXTRACT.
SO WORKING BACKWARDS WE HAVE TO MAKE SOME HARD CHOICES
ABOUT PRIORITIES. BUT THE REASON TO DO THIS, IT'S
NOT ONLY BECAUSE IN A DEMOCRACY IT'S THE RIGHT THING TO DO AND
TAXPAYERS PAY FOR THIS AND THEREFORE OWN THIS INFORMATION
AND WE SHOULD MAKE IT AVAILABLE TO PEOPLE.
I HOPE THE THING THAT I HAVE SHOWN WITH SOME OF THESE
EXAMPLES IS THAT WHEN YOU MAKE THIS INFORMATION AVAILABLE, YOU
GENERATE REAL VALUE AND TREMENDOUS COST SAVINGS TO THE
AGENCY AND HELPING THE AGENCY TO DO ITS BUSINESS BETTER.
SO I THINK IF YOU SIMPLY THROW UP A DATA SET ONLINE, I THINK
THAT OFTEN THAT ISN'T WORTH THE MONEY TO DO IT.
IF YOU DON'T THINK ABOUT THE NEXT STEP OF HOW YOU WANT PEOPLE
TO USE THAT INFORMATION TO GENERATE VALUE FOR THE AGENCY,
IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S TAKING THAT NEXT STEP AS HHS DID, TO SAY WE
ARE GOING TO PUT UP THIS INFORMATION AND WE ARE GOING TO
DEFINE SOME OF OUR GOALS IN TERMS OF BENDING THE HEALTH CARE
COST CURVE IN TERMS OF ENSURING REDUCED OBESITY RATES AND
REDUCED SMOKING RATES AROUND THE COUNTRY, AND WE ARE GOING TO
CHALLENGE PEOPLE TO WORK WITH US ON SERVING THOSE GOALS BY USING
THAT DATA TO BUILD THESE NEW TOOLS.
SO IT'S, YOU KNOW -- THIS IS HAPPENING NOT JUST ON A FEDERAL
LEVEL BUT ON A LOCAL LEVEL. I JUST DID AN EVENT WITH THE
HEAD OF MASS TRANSIT IN NEW YORK CITY WHO IS AND WE -- THE MANTRA
WAS BEAT BOSTON, BECAUSE BOSTON WAS ONE OF THE FIRST CITIES AS
WAS PORTLAND TO PUT OUT THEIR TRANSIT DATA ONLINE.
AND YOU KNOW, HE GOT UP ON THE STAGE AND WAS THE FIRST TO SAY,
HERE ARE THE PROBLEMS THAT WE ARE FACING.
YOU KNOW, WE ARE CUTTING SERVICES.
WE ARE HAVING LESS TRAINS. THEY ARE NOT AS MUCH ON TIME.
WE NEED YOUR HELP WITH THINKING ABOUT HOW TO
SOLVE THESE PROBLEMS. SO IT WAS ABOUT BEING -- THE
TRANSPARENCY HAS TO BE MARRIED TO SOME HONESTY ABOUT WHAT THE
PROBLEMS ARE THAT WE FACE. AND THAT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT I
THINK AS GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS WE ARE USED TO DOING OR COMFORTABLE
WITH DOING. NONE OF US -- YOU KNOW, I'M A
PROFESSOR BY TRAINING -- SO I DON'T KNOW IS NOT SOMETHING, YOU
KNOW, THAT WE ARE TYPICALLY -- I'M NOT PAID TO SAY I DON'T
KNOW, RIGHT, I'M PAID TO KNOW EVERYTHING AND TO GET UP ON A
STAGE AND LECTURE AT STUDENTS FOR WHICH THEY, YOU KNOW, PAY
GOOD TUITION DOLLARS. WHEN, IN FACT, WHAT WE SHOULD BE
SAYING IS I DON'T HAVE ALL OF THE ANSWERS WHETHER IT'S AS A
PROFESSOR OR GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL, BUT I KNOW WHAT THE
QUESTIONS ARE, AND I CAN HELP WORK WITH YOU AND COLLABORATE
WITH YOU ON DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS THAT ARE ACTIONABLE, THAT CAN BE
IMPLEMENTED, BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW WE CAN SAY OH, WE HAVE PROBLEMS,
BUT THEN PEOPLE GIVE YOU THESE WELL, WHY DIDN'T YOU JUST DO IT
LIKE THIS ANSWER? AND THOSE, THEY ARE NOT
ACTIONABLE, THEY ARE NOT LEGAL. THEY ARE NOT SOMETHING WE CAN DO
IN THE CONTEXT OF AN AGENCY. SO IT HAS TO BE A COLLABORATION
WHERE WE EXPLAIN HOW TO DO THINGS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST,
HOW TO DO THINGS IN A WAY THAT IS, THAT WORKS WITH OUR AGING
INFRASTRUCTURE AND OLD SERVERS, AND THAT WORKS, THAT'S LEGAL AS
IT IS ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, LEVELS THE PLAYING FIELD FOR ALL
PARTICIPANTS AND DOES ALL OF THE THINGS WE NEED IT TO DO IN TERMS
OF PRIVACY AND 508 ACCESSIBILITY, ET CETERA.
BUT IT'S ONLY BY WORKING WITH INNOVATORS THAT WE ARE GOING TO
COME UP WITH GOOD IDEAS. SORRY. COME UP WITH GOOD IDEAS.
OR NONANSWER PROBABLY TO A VERY GOOD QUESTION.
BUT I THINK IT'S BEING HONEST ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE HAVE TO
THINK THROUGH, WHY THE OPEN GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE IS NOT --
OPEN SOUNDS LIKE WE ARE ONLY ABOUT TRANSPARENCY BECAUSE OPEN
IS A NICE SHORT WORD AND IT MAKES FOR GOOD LOGOS.
INNOVATIVE GOVERNMENT IS TOO LONG, DOESN'T FIT WELL, AND NO
ONE KNOWS WHAT INNOVATION REALLY MEANS ANYWAY.
BUT IT'S ULTIMATELY WHY WE HAVE THESE OTHER TWO IDEAS,
PARTICIPATION AND COLLABORATION, BECAUSE IT'S THINKING THROUGH TO
THE NEXT STEP OF WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WITH THIS DATA.
BECAUSE WHAT I FIND IS WHEN YOU ACTUALLY TALK TO SOMEBODY ABOUT
HOW, IF YOU MAKE THAT DATA SET AVAILABLE, PEOPLE WILL HELP YOU
TO DO YOUR JOB, EASIER, FASTER, CHEAPER, PEOPLE ARE THEN REALLY
HAPPY TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT. AND FRANKLY, WHAT WE ARE USED TO
IS THE WORLD OF FOIA, AND YOU KNOW I'M A LAW PROFESSOR, I LOVE
FOIA, IT'S A GREAT INNOVATION IN DEMOCRACY.
BUT THE WAY FOIA CULTURE HAS EVOLVED IS IT MAKES OUR
RELATIONSHIP TO THE PUBLIC, INFORMATION ADVERSARIAL.
YOU KNOW, FOIA IS SOMETHING THAT HAS CREATED A WORLD IN WHICH
PEOPLE DEMAND INFORMATION FROM US AND THEY LITIGATE IT WITH US,
INSTEAD OF THE OPEN GOVERNMENT CULTURE WHICH IS WE SHARE
INFORMATION IN ORDER TO WORK AND COLLABORATE TOGETHER ON SOLVING
PROBLEMS TOGETHER. IT'S A VERY DIFFERENT WAY OF
WORKING THAT WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE UNTIL WE HAD THE
TECHNOLOGIES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO US TO ENABLE THIS
KIND OF COLLABORATION. ANYWAY, SORRY.
THAT WAS A -- IF THERE'S ANY MORE COMMENTS, I PROMISE TO GIVE
A REALLY SHORT ANSWER. MORE STORIES,
OTHER -- THE SILENT -- IT'S THE SILENT GENERATION.
[LAUGHTER] >> (LOW AUDIO).
>> I'LL REPEAT THE QUESTION. >> (LOW AUDIO).
>> SO THE QUESTION WAS ABOUT -- WE TALK A LOT ABOUT TOOLS, HOW
DO WE ACTUALLY TALK ABOUT BUILDING THE CULTURE TO SUPPORT
THOSE TOOLS? I'M VERY DELIGHTED THAT YOU
INVITED THE TEAM FROM DOT HERE TODAY BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN ONE
OF THE AGENCIES AT THE FOREFRONT OF REALLY BUILDING THAT CULTURE.
AND YOU SAW THEY HAD THAT AWESOME PIE CHART 3D GRAPHIC,
WHICH IS QUITE AMAZING, AND I WANT TO KNOW HOW THEY DID THAT.
BUT THEY HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW -- I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE UP-TO-DATE
NUMBERS ARE -- YOU STILL HAVE 200 PEOPLE ON YOUR OPEN
GOVERNMENT TEAM, ESSENTIALLY -- HAVE REALLY BEEN AT THE
FOREFRONT, I THINK AMONG AGENCIES OF THINKING ABOUT HOW
TO DRIVE THE CULTURE ACROSS THE DEPARTMENT.
BY DOING A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT WE ARE SEEING
ACROSS THE AGENCIES. ONE IS TAKING THE MISSION REALLY
SERIOUSLY AS IS OBVIOUSLY THE CASE HERE.
AND HAVING A STATEMENT FROM THE TOP ON DOWN, TO SAY
THIS REALLY MATTERS. AND IT MATTERS TO THE SECRETARY,
IT MATTERS TO THE COMMISSIONER, IT MATTERS TO THE SENIOR
LEADERSHIP. THAT YOU THEN HAVE IN PLACE A
TEAM LIKE THE ONE THAT FRANK HAS PUT IN PLACE HERE AT
SOCIAL SECURITY TO REALLY WORK ON HOW TO DO THAT.
BUT WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE VERY SUCCESSFULLY AND SOME OTHER
AGENCIES AS WELL, IS TO SAY WE ARE NOT ONLY GOING TO LOOK AT
THE CIO'S OFFICE, WE ARE GOING TO TALK TO LEGAL, WE ARE GOING
TO TALK TO POLICY, WE ARE GOING TO TALK TO PROGRAMMATIC.
WE ARE GOING TO GET A RANGE OF LEADERSHIP INVOLVED ACROSS
COMPONENTS OF THE ORGANIZATION AND BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER ON
THINKING ABOUT HOW TO ACHIEVE CORE MISSIONS
IN INNOVATIVE WAYS. SO HHS FOR EXAMPLE HAS DONE A
LOT OF THAT WITH THEIR OPEN GOVERNMENT WORK, IS CONVENING
ACROSS THE WHOLE DEPARTMENT CREATING KIND OF
AN INNOVATION TEAM. I MEAN THEIR OPEN GOVERNMENT
TEAM IS VERY, VERY, SMALL. BUT THEY HAVE A LARGER KIND OF
INNOVATION COUNCIL, IF YOU WILL, THAT TALKS ACROSS ALL OF THE
COMPONENTS ABOUT HOW TO DO THAT. AND THEN FINALLY IT'S THIS USING
NEW TOOLS OR FACE-TO-FACE EVENTS LIKE THIS ONE OR OTHERS TO
UNLEASH THE CREATIVE IDEAS FROM ACROSS THE WORKFORCE.
SO IT'S MARRYING THAT KIND OF TOP DOWN AND BOTTOM-UP STRATEGY
TO REALLY UNLEASH THE INNOVATIVE CAPACITY, BECAUSE WHETHER YOU'VE
BEEN HERE FIVE YEARS OR 50 YEARS, IT'S VERY LIKELY THAT YOU
HAVE REALLY GOOD IDEAS ABOUT HOW TO DO SOMETHING BETTER IN THE
WAYS THAT THINGS WORK. SO CREATING REGULAR CHANNELS FOR
ACTUALLY GENERATING INNOVATION AND THEN IMPLEMENTING
INNOVATIONS AS THEY ARE DEVELOPED ACROSS THE
ORGANIZATION, I THINK REALLY DO A LOT OF TO ALSO BRING AWARENESS
TO AND TO CELEBRATE THE GOOD IDEAS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE HERE.
AND WHAT WE MAINLY DO THROUGH THE OPEN GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE
IS TO CELEBRATE AND TO CURATE AND TO CHAMPION AND TO BRING
AWARENESS TO THE GOOD STUFF THAT'S ALREADY TAKING PLACE
ACROSS THE GOVERNMENT. WELL, I THINK WITH THAT I
PROBABLY -- WE ARE OVER TIME. I CAN'T -- IF NOT WE WANT
TO BE ON TIME. SO I WANT TO
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. [APPLAUSE.]
>> SO ONCE AGAIN, WE WANT TO THANK BETH FOR SPENDING HER
TIME AND PRESENTING THIS VERY USEFUL INFORMATION
WITH US TODAY. AND AS I'VE GIVEN TO
OUR OTHER GUEST SPEAKERS, WE HAVE A PLAQUE. AND THE
PLAQUE SAYS PRETTY MUCH THE SAME AS THE OTHERS, BUT I'LL
READ IT. CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION HEREBY
PRESENTED TO BETH SIMONE NOVECK FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT,
AND COMMITTMENT OF TIME TO OUR OPEN GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEE AWARENESS DAY. WE HEREBY CONFER UPON YOU
THE HONORARY TITLE OF OPEN SSA EMPLOYEE.
>> THANK YOU, THAT IS AN HONOR. THANK YOU VERY MUCH
[APPLAUSE]