Normally the launching of a new website wouldn't warrant a lot of heralding – websites get launched every day. The Congressional Management Foundation's new website, CongressFoundation.org, is a bit different. More than a new online resource, CongressFoundation.org represents the expanding mission of CMF into some exciting new areas.
In 2010 CMF's Board of Directors drafted a new mission statement. Part CMF's new mission is to "study and disseminate how to use continuously changing technologies to facilitate and enhance interactions between Congress and its constituents." Since its inception more than 34 years ago, CMF has been dedicated to providing Congress with the tools it needs to tackle its management challenges. Historically, these tools have taken the form of congressional staff salary studies, guides and publications on office management, and training programs for managers.
But in the past decade, communications – and online communications in particular – has become one of the most prominent management challenges Congress faces. As the challenges have evolved, so too have the resources CMF provides Congress: in 2010, we launched the Partnership for a More Perfect Union, dedicated to "enriching the relationship between citizens and Congress." As the premiere organization studying Capitol Hill institutional and office communications practices, we believe CMF is perfectly situated to explain how Congress works and help foster understanding, communications, and the relationship between citizens and their elected officials.
CongressFoundation.org brings together CMF online properties into one location, unifying the two core missions of CMF. "Congressional Operations" is where congressional staff will find the resources they're used to getting, such as management advice, downloadable job descriptions, and the history of our salary study research. The Partnership for a More Perfect Union's new home is now "Citizen Engagement." It includes resources for citizens, advocacy groups, and Congress. It houses all of our Communicating with Congress surveys on best practices in communications, our previous Gold Mouse Awards and best practices reports, and great new resources, such as "Inside the Hill." This series of videos was produced with the help of Fleishman-Hillard and offers an insider's look at how Capitol Hill works. It is also where you will find the latest information about our seventh round of evaluations to identify the best congressional websites, and where we will announce the Gold Mouse Awards for the 112th Congress (at the end of October).
That sounds like a tall order for a website. But in the weeks and months to come we hope you'll return to CongressFoundation.org, and if you have any comments or suggestions on how we can improve the site to better serve Congress and citizens, please contact us here. CongressFoundation.org may still be in its infancy, but it's got more than three decades of experience behind it to support CMF's expanding mission: Building Trust and Effectiveness in Congress.
