People
Why it’s time for a town hall meeting
Interactive, regularly scheduled meetings are the best way to share information with employees and address their concerns.
People
Painful hiring keeps tech talent at bay (but does money matter?)
Government needs more talented techies. Is low pay keeping them away, or is it the snail's pace – and tortured process – of federal hiring that's turning them off?
People
Looking for future leaders
Rising Star awards honor individuals doing great things today -- and who are likely to be filling the senior slots tomorrow.
Cybersecurity
Drone pilot training, DISA's big cyber contract, fed feedback, USASpending.gov and more
News and notes from around the federal IT community.
People
Is OPM's big hiring decision all it's cracked up to be?
Excepted-service hiring authority is a welcome tool for some agencies, but it's temporary relief in the ongoing struggle to snatch up digital services talent — and it has been a long time coming.
Modernization
Help wanted with 7 million lines of COBOL
The Railroad Retirement Board is looking to update its legacy IT systems.
Cybersecurity
Why insider threats keep succeeding
Outdated security models rarely address insider threats, argues John Sellers, and perimeter defense and background checks are not going to keep attackers out.
People
Rep. Connolly wants you to tell him a story
The Virginia Democrat is soliciting success stories about federal employees who go above and beyond the call of duty.
People
OPM carves out broad hiring exception for digital services
The move comes as OMB is pushing agencies to create in-house digital services teams akin to GSA's 18F and its own U.S. Digital Service.
People
Air Force setting up Silicon Valley office
The USAF will be joining the Department of Defense in Silicon Valley.
Cybersecurity
Marine cyber commander reassures comm officers
Maj. Gen. Daniel O'Donohue told communications officers that their contributions are not being overshadowed by cyber specialists.
People
Former DISA comptroller alleges retaliation
In an exclusive interview, Jimaye Sones, who was Defense Information Systems Agency comptroller from 2005 to 2013, says he was reassigned after revealing questionable accounting practices at the agency.
Cybersecurity
NSA's Silicon Valley outreach a work in progress
The wounds left by disclosures of National Security Agency surveillance may not have healed, but the NSA will continue to plumb Silicon Valley for talent.
Cybersecurity
Wounded warriors take aim at online predators
Through computer forensics training and internships, veterans are helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement tackle a backlog in child exploitation cases.
Cybersecurity
OPM tightens contracts in response to hacks
The Office of Personnel Management acted in response to a pair of hacks that potentially exposed personal information on almost 75,000 federal employees, including some with security clearances.
People
Building more agile project management offices
Delivering business outcomes with continuously changing IT portfolios requires project managers to have a more entrepreneurial skill set.
People
Agencies take first scary steps under FITARA
Federal CIO Tony Scott says the new law could mean some CIOs will be out of work.
Cybersecurity
Agencies seek at least $75 million in digital service funding
Most CFO Act agencies have made budget requests to fund Digital Services teams.
People
Unpacking Terry Halvorsen’s 3 reasons for pursuing BYOD
Bob Stevens contends that the Pentagon's test program is proof of BYOD's importance.
People