Posts Tagged: General

Really?! moments from the IG vacancies hearing

Last week, Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Darrell Issa, held a hearing entitled “Where Are All the Watchdogs? Addressing Inspector General Vacancies.” The purpose of the hearing was supposed to be why there are so many vacant Inspector General positions (the Presidentially appointed, Senate confirmed ones anyway). The Project onRead… Read more »

VA Takes Bold Steps in Using Research to Repair Supplier Relationships

When doing research regarding perceptions and attitudes of key stakeholders, it is often very challenging to gain feedback that may be brutally honest or even negative. The reality is that the most honest feedback from research is always the most valuable and provides organizations with the insights needed to enhance performance. The Department of VeteranRead… Read more »

Contract Management not Sexy, but Necessary

A recent Defense Department inspector general report found that contracting officers and their representatives (COR) at the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity need to step up their game when it comes to improving contract performance and acquisition outcomes. The report shins a light on a reality hitting many procurement offices, where the intense workload,Read… Read more »

What’s the Future of Grants Management?

Yesterday, a House subcommittee held hearings on “Improving Oversight and Accountability in Federal Grant Programs.” Officials from OMB, GAO, federal agencies, and the private sector all testified. And while (in my opinion) there was not a lot of new information or new ideas, the fact that Congress is now paying more attention to grants managementRead… Read more »

TIGTA CIO Navigates Slow and Steady on New Technology

George Jakabcin, CIO of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), takes a conservative approach to new technology. Not surprising considering his cybersecurity background and the risk-averse agency he works in. FedInsider talked to Jakabcin about his role at TIGTA and within the IRS, and about his thoughts on virtualization, cloud computing, and otherRead… Read more »

Inspector General Finds Power Grid Cyber Security Lacking

A report by the Department of Energy (DOE) Inspector General, released yesterday, revealed gaps in the way the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is implementing cyber security standards for the United States’ power grid. The audit revealed a number of issues with both the standards and their implementation. The implementation approach and schedule for criticalRead… Read more »

“If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It” is Broken

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gorillaradio/494169708/ Yesterday, like every Thursday was #lrnchat, a weekly public Twitter chat I help moderate that focuses on organizational learning. The topic was on “Tools of the Trade” and the group of 100 (more or less) professionals ran through a number of topical questions related to how we find out about, select and replace toolsRead… Read more »

Ctrl-Z and Ctrl-N

Note: At the suggestion of Andrew Krzmarzick, I am crossposting from my personal blog. A thought stewed in the slow cooker of my brain for several weeks, which finally reduced to a tasty idea in the wake of the COINs 2010 conference: It is difficult to undo (Ctrl-Z). It is often easier to begin anewRead… Read more »

So…brilliant Govloopians: who do you think needs to know about this cool green project?

Howdy, Govloopians: I just posted a link to this very cool green office renovation-going-for-LEED-green project going on at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City, spearheaded by GSA. http://go.usa.gov/c82 (edited now so you can actually go to it! :)) I am a green nerd, and I also am a contractor working on GSA content, soRead… Read more »

Looking for Potential Investors and/or Partners

Hello everyone! I am new to this site and am finding it very useful on so many levels. I have a new position with a new company starting up a federal government procurement division. My company currently has multiple municipal projects through out the Tampa Bay area and they are now expanding into the federalRead… Read more »