Emotional Intelligence with Cash Ashley, AWS EQ Evangelist

In this episode of FTA Tax Breaks, we talk with Marina Sallas with the Missouri Department of Revenue and Lauren Smith with the South Carolina Department of Revenue about the intersection or kindness and employee engagement and its impact on tax administration. Both of their organizations are known and have been recognized for promoting kindness through appreciation, engagement, and good wellness strategies focused on physical, emotional, and financial health. Missouri and South Carolina, like so many top-ranked employers, place a central emphasis on the benefits of a healthy workplace and its positive effects on employee morale and retention. This is a must listen for anyone interested in learning about the details that go into building a positive organizational culture built with the good health and wellbeing of their employees at its core.

Happy Global Ethics Day! Our latest FTA Tax Breaks guest believes we are well into an unprecedented global era of transparency, and you'll want to know why that matters. As our member tax agencies already know, the journey toward building and maintaining public trust can be challenging, influenced by rapidly changing technology, transparency, and expectations coming from our increasingly complex and stakeholder-driven global economy. In this latest episode of the FTA Tax Breaks podcast, FTA COO Ryan Minnick talks with Ethicist International CEO Andrew Blasi about ethical leadership and how leaders and organizations - both public and private - are evolving in their approaches to transparency, communications, and ethics to successfully navigate this era.

In this episode, FTA COO Ryan Minnick dives deep into the world of virtual reality (VR) and deep fakes with Michigan State and Stanford professor, Robby Ratan!If you caught Professor Ratan's captivating keynotes earlier this year at the FTA Annual Meeting in Long Beach or the Technology Conference in Boston, you know you’re in for a treat. In this episode, Robby takes us on an eye-opening journey through his groundbreaking work at the crossroads of technology and psychology.What’s all the hype about VR? Robby sheds light on the heated debates, unpacking both the fascination and fears surrounding these futuristic tools. And trust us—it’s not just sci-fi! This has real implications for us as tax professionals and society at large.He breaks down the “media equation,” a crucial concept that tax administrators need to understand to navigate the ever-evolving tech landscape. Plus, get ready for an important conversation on managing appearances in this new digital age, where balancing enhanced customer experiences with organizational integrity is more critical than ever.

How do you go from crisis to solution in less than 5 hours? For our first-ever LIVE episode from the main stage at the 2024 FTA Technology Conference, COO Ryan Minnick sits down with Rick Offenbecher, Amanda Mosel, and Brad Thome from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue to discuss their agency's response to the recent CrownStrike vulnerability.

Following a brief hiatus after our successful first season of conversations with leaders from the public, private, and academic sectors, FTA Tax Breaks Podcast is back for season two and in a big way with an amazing guest!Immediate Past IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig joined FTA COO Ryan Minnick for a fireside chat this episode, sharing stories from his time guiding the IRS through one of the toughest periods in our history - the global pandemic. Chuck talked about the many great challenges and accomplishments of his term, the importance of collaboration with state revenue agencies, and his great admiration for IRS employees and their dedication to serving the citizens of our country. It's an open, honest, and heartfelt talk that will leave you wanting to hear more. Please enjoy!

SAS Principal Social Innovation Manager I-Sah Hsieh joins FTA COO Ryan Minnick for an exciting and at times philosophical discussion of AI and how the intersection of trust and credibility will play a central role in how this rapidly advancing technology continues to be harnessed and used by organizations. This discussion goes into the ethical considerations regarding AI’s operational uses, and how tax administrators – being the fierce defenders of data privacy they are – might hold the key to the AI governance model other public-sector and even private-sector organizations will follow.

The Utah State Tax Commission is taking an associative approach to meeting customer needs by understanding the customer journey from the beginning. It’s part of Utah’s “Voice of the Customer” project that takes into consideration several elements from understanding the customer’s issue by knowing not only the immediate concern but what brought them to that moment and how the agency can best help them through their entire journey and relationship with the agency.

In this competitive labor market, businesses and organizations of all types are looking for every advantage when it comes to recruiting and retaining talented people. This is especially challenging for tax administrators and other government agencies that have the additional challenge of filling positions that pay less compared to their private sector counterparts. But overcoming that hurdle and the many other staffing challenges is possible and we have evidence it is being done and done well by two FTA member agencies that have received multi-year best place to work awards. In this episode of the FTA Tax Breaks podcast, Ryan welcomes Arizona DOR Director Rob Woods and Indiana DOR Commissioner Bob Grennes for an upbeat and enlightening conversation about the amazing work cultures that dwell within these two agencies. These leaders share their thoughts, concepts, and insights into what goes into their agencies’ recipes for success and what brought them to be top workplaces. Please Enjoy!   

The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) office plays a critical role working in the interest of the federal taxpayers. In this episode of the FTA Tax Breaks podcast, we talk with the TAS director, National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins, about her office's work as the "voice of the taxpayer." Collins shares what her office does and how it works, the good work they are currently doing, and upcoming initiatives for this office charged with protecting taxpayer rights, and improving service and tax administration as an independent voice inside the IRS. Join us for this informative and first-ever in-person Tax Breaks interview.

On this episode of FTA Tax Breaks, IRS Deputy Chief Taxpayer Experience Officer Courtney Kay-Decker joined us for a look inside the IRS’s Taxpayer Experience Office (TXO). And there was plenty to talk about as the TXO continues to elevate the quality of taxpayer interactions with the agency by identifying taxpayer trends and best practices while implementing service-wide taxpayer experience improvements. This episode is a must-see as the taxpayer experience is something everyone in at all levels of tax administration plays an important role in. Enjoy!