Blog - Page 2 of 3 - Dave Mckenna Solutions

How to live tweet a council meeting

16th November 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Transparency

If you are thinking of tweeting a council meeting, or maybe you are already tweeting meetings but thinking about how you might improve, here are some ideas that you might find helpful. Tweeting council meetings

The four conversations of good public governance

19th June 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Conversations, Public governors

Whether you are developing a strategy, designing a work programme or solving a problem, there are four conversations the you should be having; the public, regulatory, corporate and partnership conversations. Good conversations are the cornerstone

How to design a scrutiny work programme

18th June 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Capacity, Conversations, Participation, Scrutiny, Transparency

This post sets out my take on how to design a scrutiny work programme so that it’s focussed on the right issues and has the support of everyone involved. Designing a work programme is

The seven scrutiny kryptonites ☢️

7th June 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Capacity, Integrity, Participation, Scrutiny, Transparency

When I wrote about The Seven Scrutiny Powers, I had a reply on twitter mentioning kryptonite. And I thought, yes, we should be talking about this – aspects of local government culture that neutralise the

The seven scrutiny superpowers ✊

30th May 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Capacity, Conversations, Integrity, Participation, Scrutiny, Transparency

As many new councillors are getting to grips with their new roles and many more old hands are getting back up to speed, here’s a reminder of the superpowers that scrutiny councillors have to change

Triangulation: A helpful technique for better scrutiny

5th February 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Conversations, Public governors, Scrutiny

Triangulation is a key technique for anyone involved in a public scrutiny role. If you are not familiar with the concept here is a short introduction that I hope you will find helpful. As a

It takes two to dance the scrutiny tango

31st January 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Conversations, Public governors, Scrutiny

Tango is a great metaphor for good scrutiny. Whether you are a councillor, a school governor or any other member of a public body, thinking about what tango involves (the dance not the drink of

How to move the conversation from problems to solutions

8th January 2018 Dr Dave Mckenna Conversations, Solution focussed

Here are three questions you can use to turn your conversations from a negative problem focus to a constructive solution focus. These are particularly handy for the chairs of committee and board meetings to have

The TAPIC framework: A really useful governance map

5th December 2017 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Capacity, Frameworks, Integrity, Participation, Transparency

If you are looking for a method to organise your governance work, the TAPIC framework is one of the most robust in research terms and one of the simplest to use. Drawing on an extensive

The International Framework: A great option for your governance review

30th October 2017 Dr Dave Mckenna Accountability, Capacity, Frameworks, Integrity, Participation, Public governors, Scrutiny, Transparency

If you are reviewing the work of your public body and thinking about how your review should be structured, the International Framework is a great option for you to think about. It sets out seven key principles of

Dave Mckenna Solutions