by Marc Plooster | May 14, 2016 | on the job
Do I know how to ask questions? What seems like a rhetorical question at best and an absurd question at worse, I am thinking the answer may be a soft no. I would like to think I know the grammatical and punctuation rules accompanying written questions, but some may...
by Marc Plooster | Apr 9, 2016 | education/training
Core Democratic Values (CDVs) are the only topic I remember learning in first and second grade. However, beginning in third grade and beyond, I don’t remember CDVs being as integral to the social studies curriculum. At the risk of generalizing, the shift of my...
by Marc Plooster | Mar 12, 2016 | education/training
If you have not paid attention recently, there have been presidential primary elections and caucuses held across the country with more to come. About half of the states have voted for one or both major parties at the time of this writing. This election cycle,...
by Marc Plooster | Feb 13, 2016 | education/training
I am working on a new but familiar project focusing on performance management and key performance indicators (KPIs). The framework and presentation of a performance management system does not matter I am realizing. Specifically, the way performance measurement...
by Marc Plooster | Jan 9, 2016 | education/training
While reading Phi Kappa Phi’s patterns themed Winter 2015 Forum, I thought about patterns of my own life. Specifically, I thought about how I develop patterns around my neophobia (neophobia, is the aversion, fear [phobia] of the unfamiliar, new [neo]). It is...
by Marc Plooster | Dec 12, 2015 | education/training
Why are the arts celebrated? Why are STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) programs heavily supported? Why are efforts to advance professions successful? Why DON’T we equally celebrate, support, and have success advancing non-arts humanities and social...
by Marc Plooster | Nov 14, 2015 | on the job
Four weeks ago, I was approached with an opportunity some only dream of, and many, myself included, never thought was a possibility. I met with a Chief Information Officer (CIO) of a small to medium size city, and in essence, I was asked what I can and want to do. ...
by Marc Plooster | Sep 12, 2015 | About the Public Sector
The ushering in of the information age from the industrial age was supposed to allow an individual to live anywhere and remain a productive member of society. This meant that someone could, if they found it desirable, live in the forests of the Upper Peninsula of...
by Marc Plooster | Aug 8, 2015 | Career Advice
What you are about to read is more the pilot of a television series than a non-franchise movie. As a primer, I will begin by asking the question, how does one advance a career in an organization? I raise this question following two weeks on a new job after staffing...
by Marc Plooster | Jul 11, 2015 | on the job
“Dog Brain,” or as it was originally presented to me, “Lizard Brain” is acting with minimal thinking. I switch the name lizard brain to dog brain not as an insult or infringement to the instructor who uses it in his class, but rather to help clarify and solidify the...