for A Civic Technologist’s Practice Guide

Introduction

Chapter 1: What is Civic Tech?

• Government in the United States: It’s complicated
• What does tech have to offer here? 
• Navigating a nebulous problem space
• Public servants as stakeholders and colleagues

Chapter 2: Reckoning with Privilege

• Tech and the privilege of credibility
• Undoing the tech savior complex
• Representation and privilege in civic tech work
• Making civic tech for everyone
• Being an ally

Chapter 3: Ways to Contribute

• Stepping forward: Volunteer collaborations
• The business of government tech: Startups and other vendors
• Going all in: Innovation labs and digital service teams
• For the people, by the people: Citizen engagement and mutual aid
• Making partnerships and spaces inclusive

Chapter 4: Project Types

• Service delivery projects
• Infrastructure & data projects
• Specialized tools for digital government
• Swooping in for a rescue

Chapter 5: Innovation and Its Discontents

• Innovation is a flawed framework for change
• Bureaucracy and stewardship
• Perspectives on risk and failure
• The role of prototypes
• Digital transformation & continuous improvement

Chapter 6: Working in Regulated Spaces

• Budgets, cycles, and procurement
• Regulations and tooling
• How long does all this take? 
• Becoming part of the relay

Chapter 7: Essential Skills

• What skills do you need to succeed in civic tech? 
• Know your limits: Levels of competence
• Frameworks and flexibility
• Not-strictly-tech work in civic tech
• If you’re starting your career

Chapter 8: Project Teams and Methods

• Government teams and assumptions
• Open-source teams and assumptions
• The engineering-design-product triad
• Leveling up partner teams
• Filling in for product management

Chapter 9: Working With Policy

• How policy evolves in practice
• Policy implementation is the biggest opportunity for tech
• How can tech methods apply?
• Technology policy
• Policy exceptions and change

Chapter 10: Making Long-Term Change

• Open data 
• Improving procurement 
• Legacy migrations
• Metrics & analytics
• User-centered design
• Bringing capabilities inside
• Moving traditional entities forward

Chapter 11: Harmonizing Ways of Working

• Work culture: Tech versus government
• Your jargon, my jargon
• Techniques of professional inclusion
• Rigidity and hierarchy

Chapter 12: The Allies We Need

• Executive champions & strategic alignment
• Mid-level, socially connected partners
• Legal & regulatory colleagues
• Partners from outside government
• Communications and the press

Chapter 13: Pace, Risks, & Self-Care

• Rotations, terms, and the long term
• Watching your pace
• The logistics burden 
• Financial risks & planning
• How to recognize burnout
• Cultivating the karass

Conclusion

Resources

Further Reading

Acknowledgements

About the Author