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CIO Crossroads: Federal IT in the COVID Crisis – Federal CIO Edition

The ability of Federal IT operations to adapt almost overnight to support citizens and workforce amid the unique challenges of the national pandemic is one of the few bright spots in the past three months of turmoil. The drivers of that performance are neither easy nor accidental, and depend on steadfast leadership. MeriTalk is chronicling the untold stories – and lessons – of Federal IT success during the pandemic. Please join us for a conversation with Federal CIO Suzette Kent, who spotlights the value of teamwork, fast action, and focused leadership in times of crisis.

Recent News
  1. Tech Giants Back Away From Facial Recognition Amid Bias Concerns

    Three major tech companies – Amazon, Microsoft, and IBM – have recently begun backing away from aspects of their facial recognition technology businesses amid heightened racial bias concerns in the United States. 

  2. Legislators Intro Bicameral, Bipartisan Bill for Rural Telehealth Funds

    Reps. Xochitl Torres Small, D-N.M., and Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., and Sens. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., Doug Jones, D-Ala., introduced legislation in both chambers of Congress June 11 to invest $50 million in rural telehealth initiatives amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

News Briefs
  1. More Tech Companies Join Open RAN Coalition
  2. EAC Confirms Mona Harrington as Executive Director
  3. New Tech Companies Sign on to NCCoE ICS Security Project
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  1. Energy AI Office to Host Grand Tech Challenge

    The recently established Artificial Intelligence and Technology Office (AITO) at the Department of Energy (DOE) expressed interest in hosting sector-specific grand challenges that advance AI tech innovation to support U.S. AI leadership, per a June 10 request for information (RFI).

  2. Army Splitting CIO/G-6 Position Into two

    The U.S. Army announced that it would be dividing the CIO/G-6 position into two separate positions: the CIO and the Deputy Chief of Staff (DCS) of the G-6.

  3. BYOD, MFA, and TIC 3.0 – Duo Security Execs Share Insights on the new Telework Norm

    As agencies have gone remote, they have had to evolve their cyber security strategies to adjust to their new telework reality. What challenges are they encountering as they make this shift? How can they adopt or adapt “bring your own device” (BYOD) plans to ensure the security of agency applications and data?

  4. Fed CIOs Ponder What Post-Pandemic IT Workspaces May Look Like

    Nearly three months since Federal agencies were directed to maximize telework, Federal CIOs at a June 11 ATARC virtual conference talked about what the telework experience may mean for the IT workforce of the future – and how agencies may balance newfound efficiencies with the need for human interaction in the workplace.

  1. FBI Seeks Governance Risk Compliance Tool

    The Department of Justice (DOJ) is seeking proposals for a Governance Risk Compliance (GRC) tool to enable the Office of the CIO within the FBI’s Enterprise Information Security Section (EISS) to provide automated security processes and enhance reporting abilities.

  2. House E&C Republicans Urge Funding of Broadband Mapping Bill

    A group of House Energy and Commerce Committee members urged House appropriators In a June 10 letter to fund the Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability Act (Broadband DATA Act).

  3. SBA Chief Enterprise Architect Details PPP Cloud Efforts

    Bill Hunt, Chief Enterprise Architect at the Small Business Administration, detailed today some of the steps that SBA took to use the cloud for the Paycheck Protection Program established under the CARES Act in March to help fund payroll costs for small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic.

  4. Pandemic Lessons Will Drive Future Efficiencies, Federal CIO Kent Says

    Federal CIO Suzette Kent said today that lessons Federal agencies have learned during the COVID-19 pandemic need to drive further efficiencies in government IT operations in order to better prepare operations for any future emergencies.

  5. Fed CIO Council Recommends Employee Recognition, Redesigned Hiring for Future IT Workforce

    A May 2020 report from the Federal CIO Council on the future of the government IT workforce makes 10 new recommendations to improve the 21st century work environment, including better recognition for employees doing a good job and revamping the hiring process.

  6. Agencies Concerned About Digitization Project Resources, NARA Official Says

    The Chief Records Officer for the U.S. Government said agencies are “making progress” towards the Dec. 31, 2022 goal of transferring only electronic records to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), but added many agencies are concerned about resources as they strive to meet the unfunded mandate.

  7. GSA Awards Acquisition Contract

    The General Services Administration (GSA) announced that it will be awarding it’s $7.5 million Contract Acquisition Life-cycle Management (CALM) system pilot phase task order to Sevatec.

  8. CYBERCOM, National Guard Partner to Secure Elections, Address Ransomware

    The National Guard and U.S. Cyber Command have formed a partnership to open lines of communication between state and local governments and the military’s top cyber force to address the top priority of the command ­­- the 2020 elections.

  9. Senate Committee Votes to Confirm Vought, Leen Nominations

    The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted today to confirm the nominations of Russell Vought and Craig Leen as permanent director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and inspector general at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), respectively, at a business meeting today.

  10. USDA’s Kaouk to Lead Federal CDO Council

    The Federal CDO Council has selected Ted Kaouk, CDO at the Department of Agriculture (USDA), to lead the council as chair, according to a June 10 press release from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).