GovCIO Media & Research Podcasts

As the Air Force bids goodbye to CIO Lauren Knausenberger, she joined us for a live podcast recording to discuss her perspectives on how she built an agile team that is primed to tackle the service's most pressing priorities around cybersecurity, software development, data sharing and more. Plus, she provides tips and tricks for succeeding in the defense industry, the highs and lows of her time at...

Customer service continues to be a key focus for the Department of Education. As part of its Strategic Plan, the agency has fully executed the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act to provide millions of customers with ease of access to digital services. Tune in to this special update from Education CIO Luis Lopez about the progress made on digital services and other IT and cybersecurity...

Cloud Smart is one of several initiatives underway to boost IT modernization at the Department of Homeland Security. This approach is not only helping DHS better manage and access data, it's also empowering the workforce to make decisions in their environments at a faster pace.  DHS CTO David Larrimore has created a Chief Technology Officer Council that will restructure the CTO role to be more gro...

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science & Technology Directorate (S&T) welcomed a new head of information security in 2023. With over 25 years of experience in enterprise-level digital transformation across federal government, CISO Michele Thomas highlights some of the lessons learned throughout her career, what led her to the agency and how she plans to better secure critical informatio...

Women tech leaders across government and industry gathered at GovCIO Media & Research's annual Women Tech Leaders Summit to discuss how to recruit more women for government tech jobs, market the government mission and government job perks more effectively, and inspire the next generation of women tech leaders through mentorship. This special episode dives into speaker insights from the Defense Dep...

A State Department-supported effort is bringing together powerful geospatial and satellite data visualization tools to document and assess the impacts of Russia's war on Ukraine. At the heart of the data behind this effort is Susan Wolfinbarger, team lead for State's Location-based Observations for Conflict Analysis, Trends, and Evidence (LOCATE) in the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operati...

At the beginning of the year, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released its AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF) along with an AI RMF Playbook and an AI RMF Roadmap to guide the future of artificial intelligence development. Chief of Staff of the agency's Information Technology Laboratory Elham Tabassi explains the framework's collaborative development and how it incorpor...

Data touches every aspect of IT, which makes the chief data officer a jack-of-all-trades. SOCOM CDO Dan Folliard is laser-focused on getting SOCOM data-ready for advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI). He also discusses how data readiness improves an organization's overall cybersecurity posture.

In part two of this interview, National Energy Technology Laboratory's (NETL) Science-based AI/ML Institute (SAMI) Technical Director Kelly Rose discusses the foundational resources and workflows she's creating to enable access and partnerships for tech and AI tools. She details how open-source principles and security protocols will be key enablers to responsible AI for environmental missions in t...

The National Energy Technology Laboratory's (NETL) Science-based Ai/ML Institute (SAMI) is accelerating applied technology development for clean, efficient and affordable energy production. SAMI Technical Director Kelly Rose breaks down how the institute is using responsible AI in support of the Department of Energy's (DOE) environmental and social justice strategic objectives. Rose explains how N...

The Marine Corps is undertaking largescale modernization of its technical capabilities. As Deputy Commandant for Information Lt. Gen. Matthew Glavy puts it, all capabilities cannot be executed without tech especially in an ever-changing environment. Glavy discusses the efforts around computing at the edge, the foundational standpoint of information ahead of the upcoming Marine Corps Warfighting Pu...

DISA's Hosting and Compute Center (HaCC) is addressing challenges to various cloud capabilities across the Defense Department. Part of this means enhancing the overall customer experience of acquisition and breaking down silos across teams. HaCC Customer Experience Lead Kayne Kreitzer talks everything CX, including the tools that are helping the community navigate the challenging environment of cl...

The age of information superiority is more than cybersecurity. For Department of the Navy CIO Aaron Weis, it's the "golden requirement" to securely move any data from anywhere to anywhere, paving the way for programs like Project Overmatch in the Defense Department's JADC2 concept. Weis discusses the potential game-changing impacts to data as we know it with technologies like Starlink and emerging...

As the Department of the Air Force prepares to release its own zero trust plan just three months after the Pentagon released a department-wide five-year zero trust strategy, Air Force CIO Lauren Knausenberger is focused on reducing technical debt and elevating software factories to bring the Air Force into the future. Software factories can play a role in the implementation of the Defense Departme...

NIST and the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Task Force recently released new AI frameworks, which dovetail with the White House's Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and the Defense Department's Responsible AI Strategy. These AI guidance documents outline how to approach AI innovation in an ethical, responsible manner, but also how to develop AI algorithms effectively to meet mi...

2023 will be a major year for the Department of Energy (DOE), which is in the process of implementing new investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. DOE is standing up 60 new programs, and aims to direct 40% of federal investments to underserved communities under President Biden's Justice40 Initiative. From her time as CIO for the EPA to her current role as Energy CIO, Ann Dunkin has been...

Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) cloud leader Sharon Woods kicks off the new year with an in-depth conversation about the role Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability (JWCC) will play in various concurrent cloud modernization efforts across DOD. She also dives into her journey from law school to defense IT, and offers advice for young women pursuing tech and national security careers.

The National Science Foundation has a powerful mission to engage and promote innovation within the scientific community. Key to that is enabling a culture that centers around people, not just technology. A longstanding public service leader, CIO Dorothy Aronson says staying up-to-date with the latest technologies is critical to an agency's success. But getting there means having a flexible IT gove...

Connectivity is an essential component to everything in our daily lives. 5G and Wi-Fi are key enablers for all missions including data access and sharing, data analytics, communication, file transfer, logistics and more. Both 5G and Wi-Fi have separate applications, but both are necessary to ensure seamless operations. ID Technologies and Dell Technologies are tackling this convergence opportunity...

As the year comes to an end, we bid adieu to our beloved Flywheel Fridays. Join our co-hosts Deputy Editor Kate Macri and Staff Writer/Researcher Sarah Sybert as they reflect on the most memorable moments and headlines of the year, such as the passage of the PACT Act for veterans, the Defense Department's new zero trust strategy and more. We also discuss leveraging lessons learned from the show fo...

The Department of Veterans Affairs is placing the veteran at the center of every digital service. With the expansion of benefits following the passage of the PACT Act and new tools like VA's Health and Benefits mobile application, customer experience plays a critical role in how veterans access their services. VA's Chief Experience Officer John Boerstler joins us to explain how his agency is liste...

It's been a busy year for the federal family as agencies accelerate IT modernization efforts. Join Staff Writers Sarah Sybert and Katherine MacPhail at the Thanksgiving dinner table for reflections on the outcomes of those efforts and what they're thankful for this year. They'll unpack major initiatives like automation, DEI&A in the workforce, cybersecurity, CX and climate resilience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs' first permanent Chief Data Officer Kshemendra Paul announced last month that he would be leaving VA to become the Department of Energy's new assistant inspector general for cybersecurity assessments and data analysis. Paul reflects on his time as VA CDO, including developing VA's Data Strategy and Roadmap, and left a few words of advice for his successor.

GovCIO Media & Research has been hard at work covering key events and conferences to keep you informed. Join Deputy Editor Kate Macri and Staff Writer/Researcher Sarah Sybert for our top federal tech takeaways on CyberSatGov, VHA's Innovation Experience (iEX) and FedHealthIT's Women in Leadership Awards. They'll dive into the latest trends around cybersecurity, satellites, encryption, health care...

The Department of Veterans Affairs recently launched its Vision 2022 strategy, which outlines how the agency will approach its widespread IT modernization and digital transformation. Longstanding leader in software and tech development who was behind salvaging HealthCare.gov, CIO Kurt DelBene discusses the agency's continued focus on transparency, the user experience and breaking down silos across...