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Do you find yourself constantly reacting to other offices’ agendas? Do your staff find it difficult to focus their energy to achieve significant accomplishments? Or does your boss keep adding priorities and goals, leaving your team scrambling to keep up, or pose questions about their legacy that leave you quaking in your boots? If so, this session on December 17 is for you!

The Congressional Management Foundation heartily commends the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress on its latest set of recommendations. Like it has in the past, the Committee has not shied away from the difficult topics – and exploring how to improve collaboration and civility among Members and staff is surely a challenge. Additionally, the recommendations regarding key congressional support agencies and evidence-based policymaking, if implemented, would significantly improve the support Members of Congress and staff need to develop sound and well-researched public policy decisions.

For years there has been a deep need to examine the Legislative Branch for opportunities to modernize and reform, and the Committee continues to rise to the occasion. It has identified important issues and elevated them not only within the halls of Congress but into the public eye, with a keen focus on enhancing services to constituents. We heartily commend Chair Derek Kilmer, Vice Chair William Timmons, the esteemed Members of the Committee, and its hardworking staff on what they have accomplished.

Join CMF on November 8 for the first in a series of trainings based on our Democracy Awards program. Using information gleaned from winning congressional offices in Constituent Service, we'll use this time to tease out and disseminate some best practices for your office - as well as host a panel of staffers from winning offices to discuss their work and what winning a Democracy Award in Constituent Service meant to them.

CMF and the Government Affairs Institute at Georgetown University (GAI) are pleased to announce that registration is open for our joint multi-day online training on "Legislative Operations for Congressional Staff," which will be held November 8 and November 19. CMF and GAI have a combined 70 years of experience explaining how Congress really works to the public, Executive Branch employees, and the private sector.

The challenge of creating strong working partnerships between the DC and district/state offices is routinely cited by congressional staff as one of the most troubling problems they face. It is also one of the most difficult to solve because offices are frequently unclear about the cause of the problem. Unless these problems are addressed directly, they are unlikely to go away. This webinar on October 29 is intended to help you overcome any obstacles you may be experiencing.

Attend this webinar to hear from former Microsoft CEO and founder of USAFacts Steve Ballmer to discover new resources for finding powerful datasets to communicate your message, whether to constituents, your boss, or on the committee floor. This program is not about debating whose facts to believe and use — this is about helping Congress cut through the constant stream of government agency data and making it meaningful to other members of Congress and their constituents.