The Department of Veterans Affairs is moving aggressively to institute a new system to plan and manage IT projects, effectively replacing the agile development methodology championed by former chief information officers Roger Baker and Stephen Warren. VA CIO LaVerne Council told a MyVA Advisory Committee meeting last week that she has hired the second of three senior executives to lead the new IT Account Management organization. […]

The word “other” and other vague terms have infiltrated the naming convention of Federal spending categories and could wreak havoc on project budgets, according to one International Data Corporation official. […]

FedRAMP Fast Forward, a Federal IT industry advocacy group, today published a six-step plan to reform and improve the cloud security certification process known as the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP). […]

With the deadline looming for Federal agencies to submit final implementation plans for FITARA, the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act, it’s a good time to look back at the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s scorecard, released in November. With no As in sight, what does success look like? […]

Sens. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., and Tom Udall, D-N.M., are planning to introduce the Cloud Infrastructure Transition Act, which is aimed at accelerating cloud adoption throughout the Federal government. Known as the Cloud IT Act, it is focused on reforming the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP), which has come under fire on several fronts. […]

Congressman says the one-year old IT acquisition law is a good start, and now Congress will issue its controversial scorecards twice a year to ensure Federal agencies are implementing FITARA appropriately. […]

Federal chief information officers (CIOs) should take full advantage of the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) to cut costs and transform their agencies, according to panelists at the second MeriTalk FITARA Forum. “We’ve got to seize the moment,” said Steve Harris, vice president and general manager of Dell Federal Systems. “The initial momentum […]

The Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) will allow agencies to run and look like private sector organizations, panelists at MeriTalk’s FITARA Forum said. And that’s a good thing. “I think it’s wonderful that the government and the industry are collaborating and that the government is looking a lot more” like industry, said Jean […]

Should email and other personal electronic data be protected by the Fourth Amendment in the same way that a written letter or other personal effects are protected? This and other questions like it were debated today before the House Judiciary Committee. The hearing comes as HR 699, the Email Privacy Act, approaches a House vote. […]

This article originally appeared Nov. 10 as a LinkedIn post and is printed here with the permission of the author. In late June, I was honored to testify before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government on the recent Office of Personnel Management (OPM) data breaches. My testimony focused on the broader […]

Department of Veterans Affairs Chief Information Officer LaVerne Council announced Nov. 6 that Brian Burns has accepted an offer to become the agency’s next chief information security officer. Burns takes over for Dan Galik, who has served as acting CISO since Stan Lowe retired in August. Burns will also continue in his role as deputy […]

Ashley Mahan can add “evangelist” to her resume. The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) named her its “agency evangelist” on Oct. 21. Mahan’s familiarity with Federal IT and cloud computing make her an obvious choice to spread the gospel of cloud computing and sing FedRAMP’s praises to an increasingly receptive congregation of Federal […]

Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Director Matt Goodrich on Thursday said the cloud security program has established a solid foundation, but that the program needs to determine whether changes are necessary so it can continue to mature. “If we were on an S-curve, we’re still on our first S-curve,” Goodrich said. “We (have) […]

Members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday outlined numerous shortcomings in efforts by Federal agencies to implement reforms in the bipartisan Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA). The committee issued F and D letter grades to 17 agencies because of missed opportunities to cut costs and meet other benchmarks. The […]

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s hearing on the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) produced some good commentary from members of Congress and witnesses alike. Here are five comments from testimony and the subsequent discussion that provide perspective on the hearing. “I am so grateful to this committee for FITARA. I think […]

Matt Goodrich, director of the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP), has announced the hiring of a new ‘agency evangelist.’ Goodrich, who made the announcement during a webinar with Bloomberg Government Wednesday afternoon, said Ashley Mahan will provide much-needed help and expertise in the FedRAMP Program Management Office (PMO). “She’s been supporting the team […]

  FedRAMP last week unveiled an online training course to help users understand the new review and approve process. The training is available on the agency’s training page. The new training is intended to help FedRAMP cloud service providers (CSPs) and others understand the lengthy and complex process to receive FedRAMP compliance. According to FedRAMP, […]

Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas) didn’t waste any time at a recent field hearing to say Federal agencies are dragging their feet when it comes to cloud computing. “We deserve a Federal government that harnesses innovative solutions such as the cloud to modernize record keeping, improve critical government functions, maximize security, and be wise stewards of […]

Cloud Service Provider (CSP) Esri last week earned a rare distinction – its Managed Cloud Services became the first system to transition from a CSP supplied package to an agency FedRAMP authorization. Esri, based in Redlands, California, initially earned its Authority to Operate (ATO) at the moderate level from the U.S. Census Bureau. Esri provides […]

Data breaches at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) have prompted a major cybersecurity push in Congress, and two bills propose giving the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) new authority and tools to protect Federal systems. […]

Cloud is all about speed. Cost savings are great and agility is great, but it’s the potential to increase the speed – and therefore effectiveness – of government that is cloud’s greatest potential benefit. […]

The Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) aimed to empower agency CIOs and improve federal IT management. Now comes the hard part: putting those ideas into practice. […]

Key Federal leaders share their thoughts on FITARA, cybersecurity, and more. […]

Federal agencies are using social media as a real-time engagement and response tool and letting politicians make all the gaffes. […]

Since President Obama appointed Tony Scott as Federal CIO six weeks ago, Scott has toured agencies and made only a few public appearances. But last week was his coming out party. He made at least two appearances and didn’t hold back his opinions. […]

Call him Tony the Tiger: Just weeks into his new job, new Federal CIO Tony Scott is on the prowl for the most promising techies on the government payroll. […]

The Government Accountability Office two weeks ago added IT to its biennial list of high-risk issues. But it’s not all because of big, failed projects. Legacy systems are among the biggest culprits. […]

President Obama’s choice for the next Federal Chief Information Officer is a law school graduate and career IT executive without government experience. […]

The Federal Information Security Modernization Act, passed this month, brings cybersecurity into the 21st century and changes the rules of the road for Federal employees in IT. […]