Vivek Kundra: “Engage the American People in their Daily Digital Lives”

Crisis Response Using Cloud Computing

By G C Network | May 31, 2017

    Cloud computing is more than servers and storage. In a crisis situation it can actually be a lifesaver. BlackBerry, in fact, has just become the first cloud-based crisis…

Cloudy Thinking and Digital Transformation

By G C Network | May 30, 2017

(Originally posted on the Engility Corporation Blog)   There’s a lot to gain from cloud computing, but success requires a thoughtful and enterprise focused approach. Cloud computing decouples data and…

Blockchain Business Innovation

By G C Network | May 18, 2017

Is there more than bitcoin to blockchain?   Absolutely, because today’s blockchain is opening up a pathtowards the delivery of trusted online services.   To understand this statement, you need…

How Quantum computing with DNA storage will affect your health

By G C Network | May 5, 2017

By Guest Contributor: Taran Volckhausen, Contributing Editor at Vector (https://www.indexer.me)   Moore’s Law, which states that processing speeds will double every two years as we cram more and more silicon…

36 Shades of Hybrid IT

By G C Network | April 29, 2017

Photo credit: Shutterstock Everyone has heard of the 50 Shades of Grey. But do you know the “36 Shades of Hybrid IT”? These shades are a new way of describing…

Digital Transformation Driven by ITaaS

By G C Network | April 15, 2017

Photo credit: Shutterstock   When executing an effective digital transformation strategy, management is tasked with placing the right workload into the most appropriate IT environment. This represents a shift from…

IBM Interconnect 2017: Cloud, Cognitive and Data!

By G C Network | April 4, 2017

A couple of weeks ago while attending IBM Interconnect 2017 I had the awesome opportunity to participate in the IBM Interconnect 2017 Podcast Series with Dez Blanchfield. I not only…

The BYOD Problem

By G C Network | March 31, 2017

Everyone wants their device of choice right there next to them 24/7.  To an employer, however, that smart device is nothing more than a dagger posed to rip apart every…

Both Sides of Enterprise Mobility

By G C Network | March 16, 2017

Photo credit: Shutterstock Enterprise mobility has become table stakes in the world of business.  The ability to access current information at any time, from anywhere, on any device has really…

Cloud Computing Forensics Readiness

By G C Network | March 8, 2017

Photo credit: Shuterstock In today’s globally connected world, data security breaches are bound to occur. This, in turn, increases the importance of digital forensic readiness, or the ability to access…

Today I attended a very impressive talk by the Federal CIO, Mr. Vivek Kundra at a Northern Virginia Technology Council Public Policy event. His open and “matter of fact” approach to explaining the coming government IT transformation was focused and direct.

After engaging the audience with a personal anecdote about the 9/11 interview in Arlington that catapulted his professional career, he outlined why Virginia was his model for transforming the Federal information technology platform and bureaucracy. In tackling this huge task, his baseline assumptions appear to be as follows:

  • The Federal Government has not done a good job of establishing IT requirements;
  • Private companies have not been held accountable for their failures in delivering IT to the Federal enterprise; and
  • “Faceless accountability” for the failure of Federal IT efforts must become a thing of the past.

Another key point was that while recovery of the national economy is a clear priority, it is also important to understand what we are recovering to. To that end, Recovery.gov and the National Academy of Public Administration are hosting a national online dialog in order to engage the public, IT solution providers and government partners in answering one key question:

“What ideas, tools, and approaches can make Recovery.gov a place where the public can monitor the expenditure and use of recovery funds?”

Mr. Kundra’s also outlined his vision of a “context driven government”. The key question for successfully implementing this vision is:

“How do we engage the American public in their daily digital life?”

It is now clear to me why the President selected him as the first Federal CIO. His practical and results oriented management style bodes well for us all.

If you would like to participate in the Recovery Dialogue on Information technology Solutions, visit https://www.recovery.gov/ anytime between April 27th and May 4th.

Follow me at https://Twitter.com/Kevin_Jackson

G C Network