Supermod
el turned businesswoman Kathy Ireland presided over a different kind of fashion show on March 4 in Washington.
Ireland hosted an event sponsored by MeriTalk in which models walked the runway to show off products that information technology vendors are marketing to the federal government. Models took turns working the
catwalk to advertise products from companies such as Akamai, Google, HP, Lexmark, and Red Hat. Meanwhile, before and after the show people braved a long line to have their pictures taken with Ireland.
Here's another, less-famous but still-striking, model at the show:
Posted on Mar 05, 2010 at 3:19 PM0 comments
Roger Baker, CIO of the Veterans Affairs Department, had a busy schedule this week talking about the 2011 budget request and VA program updates at two breakfast events, in testimony on the Hill and in a conference call with reporters. He managed to keep his sense of humor throughout.
In a Q&A at a Bisnow conference on Feb. 23, asked about the relationship between the VA and the Military Health System on health record interoperability, he said, “It is a lot like a marriage.” Then he paused, as the audience waited for him to finish the thought. But ultimately, he said nothing more.
Roger Baker hit the phones with the news media on Feb. 24 to publicize the VA’s program management approach to troubleshoot IT programs. “We are working through it. I liken it to a swamp fairly frequently. I hope the water gets lower but sometimes it gets higher. There are alligators right now,” Baker said.
Posted on Feb 25, 2010 at 12:07 PM0 comments
The General Services Administration today announced three new regional administrators:
George Northcroft is the new regional administrator of GSA’s Northwest Region. Northcroft will oversee all of GSA’s operations in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. He most recently was director of business relations and economic development for King County in Washington state.
Shyam Reddy was named regional administrator of the agency's Southeast Region and starts the job March 29. Reddy will oversee all of GSA’s operations in southern states from Kentucky to Florida. Reddy most recently worked as a partner at Kilpatrick Stockton, a law firm in Atlanta.
Jason Klumb was named regional administrator of GSA’s Heartland Region and begins Feb. 24. Klumb will oversee all of the agency's operations in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. Klumb is a major in the Army National Guard Judge Advocate General Corps, and recently returned to private practice after a year's deployment to Kosovo as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Posted on Feb 23, 2010 at 1:33 PM1 comments
Aneesh Chopra gave a state of the union address today in Washington — for technology, that is.
Chopra, the Obama administration’s chief technology officer, keynoted The Atlantic magazine’s State of the Union for Technology event today.
Chopra discussed some of the Obama administration’s programs focused on making government data more available and harnessing information technology for governance. Chopra also touted the administration's commitment to investing in technology research and development, and tax policies that he said promote innovation and entrepreneurship.
Meanwhile, Chopra said an "all hands on deck approach" is needed for the development of a clean energy economy and to find innovations in the health care system that can improve patient satisfaction and lower costs.
Chopra was follow by a panel that discussed technology policy questions related to privacy and security.
Posted on Feb 23, 2010 at 12:50 PM0 comments
Dan Mintz, former chief information officer of the Transportation Department, has joined Powertek Corp. as the company’s chief operating officer.
After leaving Transportation at the end of the Bush administration, Mintz joined Computer Sciences Corp. as the chief technology officer of CSC’s civil and health group.
Powertek of Rockville, Md., is an 8(a) woman-owned small business offering services and solutions in information sharing and analysis, systems integration, software engineering, IT support, consulting and financial management services.
Mintz was hired in part for his interest in areas such as social networking, open government, and cybersecurity, the company said.
“I am pleased that Dan is joining Powertek and am confident that his extensive experience in the government and private sector will enable us to offer our customers a fresh perspective for approaching critical Government initiatives while continuing to provide the highest level of service,” said Nancy Scott, Powertek president.
Posted on Feb 22, 2010 at 12:11 PM0 comments
Nearly two dozen Defense Department and civilian agencies information technology executives provided a preview of upcoming IT programs and procurements this week at the 23rd annual Federal Networks conference in McLean, Va.
Conference organizers--TeleStrategies and Suss Consulting--insisted that officials' remarks be considered off-the-record. That kind of policy in a room filled with hundreds of government contracting representatives has always struck us a bit oxymoronic, especially in this day and age where virtually everyone in the audience is capable of tapping away Tweets and e-mails.
Most of the presentations have been seen before--although the conference's comprehensive round-up of agencies has made it a stand out event over the years.
And a number of presentations, like one presented by Gary Winkler, who leads the US Army's Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems, provided a practical preview of upcoming requests for proposals expected to be released.
But the presentations also featured a variety of notable facts. For instance, even with the advent of the 10-year-old Navy Marine Corps Intranet, which is scheduled to be officially retired this Sept. 30, the Navy still operates 400 networks and 11,000 applications. Updating those systems is particularly acute aboard the Navy's vessels, where the carriers maintain an average of 15 on-board networks; cruisers and destroyers average seven networks. And because of turn-around requirements, it typically takes more than 8 years between major refreshes of new IT systems, according to a Navy representative who spoke at the conference. We can't name her, but everyone else in the audience will be able to tell you it was Navy Rear Admiral (select) Gretchen Herbert, who heads up the Navy's Net-Centric Capabilities Division.
Posted on Feb 19, 2010 at 2:54 PM0 comments