As part of my 2013 resolutions, I plan to set some management goals, and I encourage you to do the same.

Based on interviews and focus groups with federal employees -- managers, program staff and analytics staff -- we identified strategies for using data to make informed assessments of how programs are working and how to achieve better results.

While agencies have their own performance management systems and timetables for employee reviews, these conversations should be occurring throughout the year.

As a general rule, successful federal leaders are highly motivated by a public service mission, clearly articulate a vision of what they want to accomplish, are persistent, collaborative and often have bosses who provide them with strong support.

Michael Harvey is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Business Management at Washington College. His work and research focuses on how leaders communicate.

Laura Vanderkam is a nationally recognized writer whose focus is on helping her readers rediscover their true passions and beliefs in pursuit of more meaningful lives.

Tom Tidwell is chief of the U.S. Forest Service, the agency that manages the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands that encompass 193 million acres.

The federal government's human-resources community has its hands full dealing with declining budgets, looming workforce reductions, employee retirements, widening gaps in leadership skills and a host of other challenges.

Martha Joynt Kumar is a professor of political science at Towson University and the author and coauthor of several books on White House-related subjects.

There is a general assumption, or at least the hope, that reasonable heads will prevail and sequestration will be avoided after several dramatic rounds of brinksmanship.

David Strickland is the administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the agency dedicated to reducing automotive crash-related injuries and fatalities while ensuring safety on the nation's roadways.

Geoff Smart is the chairman and CEO of ghSMART, a leadership firm for CEOs and investors. He is the author of leadership books and a social entrepreneur who sees his mission as creating, communicating and putting into practice useful ideas about leadership.

No one sets out to get in trouble, but they end up there nonetheless. If you're interested in avoiding negative public attention and keeping your neck off the chopping block, here are some rules for federal leaders to live by.

Federal employee satisfaction with pay was down 6.1 percent during 2011, the most significant drop in almost 10 years. As a federal leader, your initial reaction might be to throw your hands up in air.

Jon Leibowitz is the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. Prior to his tenure at the FTC, Leibowitz served as the democratic chief counsel and st...

To some public servants, the call to do even more with even less may sound all too familiar. It's especially difficult if your employees see it as a call to work even harder to achieve the same results with fewer resources.

Senior government leaders appear hesitant to make decisions or convert risks into opportunity even when presented with data that justifies a certain decision. Why?