All Learning Content
Is open source an opening for cyber threats?
May 23, 2017
In “Buy vs. build to reduce insider threats“, Rob Morrow (Public Sector CTO at Cloudera) makes an argument about the vulnerability of open source code.
But not just any open source code.
Mr. Morrow suggests that when agencies build in house solutions using “free” open source code, the...
Breaking Down the 2018 Budget
May 23, 2017
The big news of the day is the release of President Donald Trump’s budget, with a number of publications looking at its impact. The Federal Times has put together a multimedia report, including an assessment of the budget’s impact on federal retirement plans, what it means for technology, and...
GAO: Better Data Needed on Data Center Consolidation Savings
May 22, 2017
While federal agencies are seeing billions in savings thanks to data center consolidation, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports that a lack of consistency in how data is reported may mean those savings are not clear to both the agencies and the watchdog. Of the 23 current strategic...
CBP and Procurement Innovation Lab Issue RFP for IT Contract
May 22, 2017
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a request for proposal (RFP), seeking a vendor to “take charge of its overall IT infrastructure, to create a modernization strategy and oversee the transition to a cloud-based computing environment,” according to FCW. The awardee, which is set...
CGP: A Word of Caution about Defense Acquisition Reforms
May 22, 2017
The Coalition for Government Procurement has released a statement in response to Rep. Mac Thornberry’s defense acquisition reform proposals, which largely focused on improving the Department of Defense’s purchase of commercial items. The Coalition applauded the House’s attention to the issue,...
Comptroller General Gene Dodaro: Agencies Need to Get Control of Improper Payments
May 22, 2017
Comptroller General Gene Dodaro recommended to the Senate Budget Committee that Congress force agencies to rein in its improper payments. “The federal government really is not able to determine the extent of this problem or have a reasonable prospect that it’s managing it properly to reduce...
Evidence-Based Government: It’s Not Rocket Science
May 22, 2017
Many people have an instinctive negative reaction to a phrase such as “evidence-based government,” seeing it as reeking of jargon or signaling some kind of cult.
It’s time to demystify this idea. I suggest that one way to do so is by looking at examples of what evidence-based government looks...
SBA Announces Federal Agencies Hit Small Business Contracting Goal
May 19, 2017
The Small Business Administration announced today that the federal government reached its small business contracting goal for the fourth consecutive year, awarding 24.34% of federal contracting dollars to small businesses, eclipsing the 23% goal, but dropping from 25.75% last year. The government...
Defense Acquisition Reform Bill Wants to Create a Marketplace Like Amazon
May 19, 2017
Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX) has released his defense acquisition reform bill, which will be folded into the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) later this year. The bill focuses on improving the Department of Defense’s purchasing of commercial items. According to Federal News Radio, “The...
Malusi Gigaba Announces Need to Reform Procurement in South Africa
May 19, 2017
On Monday May, 15, the Finance Minister of South Africa Malusi Gigaba announced, in a speech to the Black Business Council, that the country’s National Treasury would use its 500 billion rand ($40 billion) annual procurement budget to spur economic development and pursue certain larger, social...
Fail Fast and Learn – What a Kindergartner Can Teach Us
May 19, 2017
I went to my son’s kindergarten orientation this morning. One thing that one teacher mentioned during the presentation really rung true with me. In making a point about helping our 5-year old children become more independent, she recommended that parents let their kids try and not be afraid to...
Illinois Officials at Odds over Massive Procurement
May 18, 2017
Illinois Comptroller Susan Mendoza has published a column in the State Journal-Register about concerns she has over proposed changes to the Department of Healthcare and Family Services’s Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MCO) system. Mendoza writes: “With a cost of between $35 billion and $40...
