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Future USS Daniel Inouye Destroyer Clears Navy Acceptance Trials; Capt. Seth Miller Quoted
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Future USS Daniel Inouye Destroyer Clears Navy Acceptance Trials; Capt. Seth Miller Quoted

The future USS Daniel Inouye ship has passed its acceptance trials conducted by the U.S. Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) to determine if the service's requirements for onboard systems and performance were met or exceeded.

The series of demonstrations for the General Dynamics Bath Iron Works-built Arleigh Burke-class destroyer was held Feb. 4 off the coast of Maine, the Navy said Friday. INSURV tested and validated its combat systems, communications, navigation, damage control, mechanical and electrical systems and propulsion applications.

“Following an outstanding Combined Alpha and Bravo trials this past December, DDG 118 performed superbly during the ship’s Acceptance Trial earlier this week,” said Capt. Seth Miller, DDG 51 class program manager for Program Executive Office Ships.

The Flight IIA destroyer is fitted with the Aegis Baseline 9 Combat System for advanced reaction time, firepower and electronic countermeasures capability. The system is capable of integrated air and missile defense and enhanced ballistic weapon system protection.

In addition to the future USS Daniel Inouye, BIW is also developing four Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, two Flight III ships and one Zumwalt-class destroyer.

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Sean Ferris Named State OIG’s Acting Deputy Director for Data Analytics
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Sean Ferris Named State OIG’s Acting Deputy Director for Data Analytics

The State Department has appointed Sean Ferris, a neatly three-year department official, to serve as acting deputy director for data analytics within its Office of the Inspector General (OIG), G2Xchange FedCiv reported Tuesday. According to Ferris' LinkedIn entry, the title, which he received in January 2021, is unofficial and pending approval.

Ferris is a management and program analyst at State Department's OIG, serving as strategic planning and risk management officer within its Office of Enterprise Risk Management.

Prior to joining the department in April 2018, he was responsible for strategic planning and performance works as a management and program analyst at the U.S. Postal Service OIG.

Ferris' career also includes working at the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) Veterans Benefits Administration and serving at the U.S. Air Force.

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Army Developing Simulated Environment for Region-Based Combat Training
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Army Developing Simulated Environment for Region-Based Combat Training

The U.S. Army has developed a simulated training environment to help refine the combat skills of warfighters based on real geographic regions.

The Army said Thursday the Decisive Action Training Environment (DATE) World platform builds on almost a decade of development work and falls under the Army’s Intelligence Directorate (G-2) within the Training and Doctrine Command.

DATE World mimics four regions around the world, namely the Pacific, Caucasus, Africa and Europe. The simulation platform also includes details on force structure and available equipment and weaponry based on the geographic location.

Jennifer Dunn, branch chief at TRADOC's Operational Environment Integration Directorate, said DATE World is meant to support ground combat activities at a large scale.

The Army currently plans to refine DATE World to further include gaming elements, a geographical information system and other visualization and mapping concepts. 

The service also plans to integrate elements to better reflect environmental conditions for Australian, New Zealand, Canadian and United Kingdom allies. Dunn noted that her office plans to conduct events similar to a virtual conference held in January to establish development priorities for DATE World.

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DHS S&T Launches Collaborative Effort to Support Aerial Border Security; Teddy Damour Quoted
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DHS S&T Launches Collaborative Effort to Support Aerial Border Security; Teddy Damour Quoted

The Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T) has commenced an effort to demonstrate its aerial surveillance technologies in support of security at the U.S.-Canada border. 

S&T said Thursday it is working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to trial and eventually implement these technologies.

“Over the next two years, we will be hosting demonstrations and test events in four different geographical regions on the northern border—flat lowland plains, an urban setting, a mountainous region and a maritime environment," said Teddy Damour, an engineer at the directorate's National Urban Security Technology Laboratory 

The Congress-supported effort will make use of small unmanned aircraft systems and other types of drones to simulate air domain threats.

DHS expects to conduct the effort's first wave of tests at Camp Grafton in North Dakota this spring. Each of the demonstration's four sessions will last for a week with the participation of up to four vendors per session.

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MDA Announces New Approach to Manage Ground-based Midcourse Defense
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MDA Announces New Approach to Manage Ground-based Midcourse Defense

The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has reported the need for a new approach to managing the ground-based, anti-missile system to protect the nation, Defense News reported on Friday. Vice Adm. Jon Hill, MDA director, reported that the increased competition has required the agency to increase innovation and new solutions for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system (GMD).

Hill announced that the MDA plans to establish a weapon system integrator  as opposed to a lead system integrator, which would assume responsibility for the system’s design, development, test, evaluation and system performance.

MDA could lead the design and implementation of solutions, but would need support with integration of all the GMD elements, a function MDA’s weapon system integrator concept should perform. Technical design authority and program decisions should be retained by MDA.

The Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) Oct. 2020 missile defense report stated that the lead system integrator approach has “contributed to poor acquisition outcomes and diminished government oversight, transparency, and engineering acumen in the acquisition community.”

GAO also reported that “the lead system integrator approach can create transparency issues that could make it more difficult for the federal agency or Congress to adequately manage and conduct effective oversight and potentially increase the risk of cost overruns, schedule slippage, poor product quality, and inadequate system performance.”

As MDA formulates the weapon system integrator concept for GMD, as well as the contract, the agency will have to enhance communication between MDA and subcontractor subject matter experts or weapons system operators and foster a collaborative approach to management between MDA and all of GMD’s supporting contractors.

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Maximus Reports Fiscal Year 2021 First Quarter Results; Bruce Caswell Quoted
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Maximus Reports Fiscal Year 2021 First Quarter Results; Bruce Caswell Quoted

Maximus has reported financial results for the three months ended December 31, 2020, the company announced on Friday. The report found that  revenue increased 15.6 percent to $945.6 million as compared to $818.2 million reported for the prior-year period. 

"Maximus is at the forefront of providing government much needed support in their efforts to control the spread and address the challenges of the global pandemic," said Bruce Caswell, president and chief executive officer of Maximus and 2021 Wash100 Award recipient. 

The revenue increase was driven by new COVID-19 response work, including contact tracing, disease investigation, vaccination support, unemployment insurance program support and other key priorities.

"Recently, we expanded our pandemic-response work with new contracts supporting vaccination administration efforts. We are proud that our customers rely on our proven agility and scalability in providing effective business process services under compressed timelines,” Caswell added. 

Maximus’ operating income margin was 9.3 percent and diluted earnings per share were $1.03. The company’s results for the quarter were ahead of consensus estimates, and in line with its expectations. The outlook for fiscal 2021 has improved, driven by recent awards, scope increases, and contract extensions. 

In addition, the company will raise revenue and earnings guidance for fiscal 2021 with revenue expected to range between $3.400 billion and $3.525 billion and diluted earnings per share to range between $3.55 and $3.75 per share. A quarterly cash dividend of $0.28 for each share of our common stock outstanding payable on February 26, 2021, to shareholders of record on February 12, 2021.

“As the new administration launches many initiatives, Maximus is uniquely positioned to further leverage our core capabilities in response to President Biden's commitment to public health, social welfare, and affordable healthcare,” Caswell concluded. 

Caswell recently spoke with ExecutiveBiz regarding how the company has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as enhancing workforce support, developing new technologies and supporting employment services. Additionally, Caswell discussed investments in new technologies, as well as where Maximus will head in 2021.

ExecutiveBiz: What are your expectations and future plans for Maximus to continue its growth in new markets within the U.S. federal market and overseas?

“I’m very proud of the progress we’ve made in the last nine years, including growing our federal business from about $90 million to about $1.4 billion over that time. We’d like to continue to expand in the federal marketplace, especially within technology and helping our customers solve more complicated challenges with advanced technologies.

To read Bruce Caswell’s full Executive Spotlight, vist blog.executivebiz.com.

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NIST Publishes SP 800-172 to Advise on Handling Sensitive Information; Ron Ross Quoted
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The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) has published its NIST SP 800-172 to provide advice for contractors that handle sensitive information that could be threatened by adversarial nation-states, FedScoop reported on Friday.

“Cyberattacks are conducted with silent weapons, and in some situations those weapons are undetectable,” Ron Ross, a computer scientist and a NIST fellow, said. “Because you may not ‘feel’ the direct effects of the next hack yet, you may think it is coming someday down the road; but in reality, it’s happening right now.”

In the report, NIST has analyzed how systems administrators should arrange networks, as well as which security practices could provide additional protection from advanced persistent threats (APTs).

Additionally, NIST highlighted practices that should already be in place for federal contractors, including strong passwords, multi-factor authentication and automated tracking of unauthorized users on a network, as well as maintaining cyber-response teams in the event of a major incident.

NIST SP 800-172 has expanded NIST’s SP 800-171, a set of requirements that often apply to federal contracts that deal with controlled unclassified information (CUI). The Pentagon also launched the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program to ensure contractors are meeting requirements through third-party verification.

NIST’s publication follows the SolarWinds breach, where attackers compromised the company’s update servers to push out malware. President Biden recently stated his administration is introducing an “urgent initiative” to improve the country’s cybersecurity.

“We’ve elevated the status of cyber issues within our government,” Biden said Thursday as part of his national security speech at the State Department. “We are launching an urgent initiative to improve our capability, readiness and resilience in cyberspace.”

Biden cited some of the recent efforts to address cyber issues, including the creation of the new role of deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology. The president appointed Anne Neuberger, formerly director of cybersecurity at the National Security Agency (NSA) and an inductee into the 2021 Wash100 Award, to the newly created position within the National Security Council (NSC) in January.

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CISA Extends Term of ICT Supply Chain Task Force; Bob Kolasky Quoted
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CISA Extends Term of ICT Supply Chain Task Force; Bob Kolasky Quoted

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has extended the term of a supply-chain security task force for an additional six months to continue efforts to protect the information and communications technology (ICT) sector.

CISA said Thursday the extension will allow the ICT Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) Task Force to build on its work detailed in its Year 2 report which covers information sharing, manufacturer evaluation, threat analysis and COVID-19 impacts.

The public-private task force is headed by CISA in partnership with the IT and Communications Sector Coordinating Councils. As part of its extended term, the group will continue promoting partnerships with international allies, stakeholders and other sectors to address issues in ICT supply-chain resilience.

Robert Mayer, co-chair of the task force, said the group has worked to engage government and ICT stakeholders to help secure the global supply chain over the past two years.

Bob Kolasky, assistant director of CISA  and Task Force co-chair, noted that the extension will also ensure that the partnership can “work beyond the normal governmental processes" and address unique ICT issues.

The task force will also build on findings detailed in its Working Group 2 Threat Scenarios Report and continue supporting the Federal Acquisition Security Council.

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Interagency Cyber Group Releases Document to Educate Public on Ransomware
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Interagency Cyber Group Releases Document to Educate Public on Ransomware

The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force (NCIJTF), a partnership between multiple security and intelligence agencies, has published a new fact sheet made to educate the masses on ransomware threats. Subject matter experts from across more than 15 government agencies contributed their input to develop the fact sheet under NCIJTF, the FBI said Thursday.

Ransomware is a type of malware that forcefully encrypts a victim's computer files and demands monetary payment to restore user access. NCIJTF is tasked to disseminate information on cyber threats, and therefore works to educate the masses about issues such as ransomware.

The U.S. government has placed concern on how ransomware attacks can delay critical operations of public safety networks and state and local agencies.

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Defense Procurement Vet James Geurts to Serve as Navy’s Undersecretary on Acting Basis
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Defense Procurement Vet James Geurts to Serve as Navy’s Undersecretary on Acting Basis

James Geurts, who most recently served as the assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition and was a 2020 Wash100 Award recipient, was designated the service’s acting undersecretary on Thursday.

Geurts will also concurrently perform duties as chief operations and management officer of the Department of the Navy (DON), the service said the same day. He oversaw the Navy’s annual $100 billion budget for naval technologies essential to U.S. maritime defense in his most recent role, which ran from late 2017 to early 2019.

His three-decade career includes technology procurement-related work with U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and the U.S. Air Force, where he managed programs for missiles, fighter aircraft, avionics systems, unmanned aircraft and other technologies.

“Having supported the military, both in and out of uniform, for the majority of my life, I know that when we are empowered and focused on the mission we can accomplish amazing things,” Geurts said.

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