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Frank Calvelli Seeks to Accelerate Space Tech Procurement With 9 ‘Space Acquisition Tenets’
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Frank Calvelli Seeks to Accelerate Space Tech Procurement With 9 ‘Space Acquisition Tenets’

Frank Calvelli, assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisitions and integration, issued a memo outlining nine “space acquisition tenets” meant to transform the way the service procures space systems, SpaceNews reported Tuesday.

“The traditional ways of doing space acquisition must be reformed in order to add speed to our acquisitions to meet our priorities,” Calvelli wrote in the Oct. 31 memo obtained by the publication.

“To gain speed we must shorten development timelines by building smaller satellites, acquiring ground and software intensive systems in smaller more manageable pieces that can be delivered faster, using existing technology and designs,” he added.

Aside from advancing the development of smaller satellites, other tenets cited in the memo include getting the acquisition strategy correct, awarding contracts with realistic cost and schedule targets; maintaining stability in programs; and delivering ground systems before launch.

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Army Seeks Industry Feedback on Software Bills of Materials
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Army Seeks Industry Feedback on Software Bills of Materials

The U.S. Army has asked industry for insights on how to collect and use software bills of materials to help improve the security of its software supply chains and comply with the policies codified in the May 2021 executive order on cybersecurity.

The service will use the responses to the request for information to inform technical policies and contracting guidance for acquiring software, according to a notice published on Oct. 21.

Interested stakeholders should answer several questions related to SBOM requirements, including the type of contractual language that their companies expect to see from a solicitation that includes SBOMs as a primary deliverable and potential approaches that could be used to secure the supply chain when contracting for software development services.

The Army is also requesting information on new concepts that could be explored when contracting for secure software development.

Young Bang, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, said the military branch “is going to go headfirst into SBOMs,” according to a report by Federal News Network.

“Some of you might have concerns on it — that’s great,” Bang said during a panel on Oct. 11 at a conference in Washington. “We want to hear those concerns, come and talk to us specifically about it, but it’s going to happen. We’re going to do it, and the Army is going to be the first agency that is going to implement this correctly.”

Responses to the RFI are due Nov. 10.

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Executive Mosaic Launches 2023 Wash100 Award & Opens Executive Nominations For Historic 10th Season
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Executive Mosaic Launches 2023 Wash100 Award & Opens Executive Nominations For Historic 10th Season

Executive Mosaic, the government contracting sector’s premier media and events organization, is honored to announce the launch of the highly-anticipated 2023 Wash100 Award season for its historic tenth year.

The Wash100 Award, GovCon’s most prestigious accolade, annually recognizes the top 100 executives of consequence in the GovCon community in anticipation of their invaluable contributions, groundbreaking achievements and positive impact across the federal landscape in the coming year.

This year, Executive Mosaic anticipates the 2023 Wash100 Award season to be its most competitive and engaging race yet, as hundreds of GovCon’s top executives vie for the coveted title and compete to win a spot on the list of GovCon’s 100 key figures.

“For the tenth consecutive year, Executive Mosaic has accomplished the extraordinary task of identifying an amalgam of consequential leaders that represent a decade of unmatched growth, technological achievement and acceleration in our government and its critical public-private partnerships,” said Jim Garrettson, CEO and founder of Executive Mosaic.

“The award only continues to gain prominence within our community because its winners are recognized for their future contributions,” Garrettson continued. “The Wash100 Award is always about looking forward in our business.”

Do you know a GovCon executive who is deserving of GovCon’s highest honor? Submit your nominations for the most influential leaders in GovCon at Wash100.com! Nominations are open until Jan. 11, 2023.

“The GovCon community has always helped Executive Mosaic bring great prestige and honor to the true leaders and trailblazers of our industry with the annual presentation of the Wash100 Award,” said Garrettson. “As you nominate your executives for 2023, remember to recognize those in our community who will continue to demonstrate the highest level of commitment, innovation, vision, reliability and achievement.”

Last year’s 2022 Wash100 Award season garnered record-breaking participation in executive nominations and voting, with well over 1,100 votes cast for the popular vote winner, Lauren Knausenberger, CIO of the Department of the Air Force, and thousands more votes cast for other prominent 2022 Wash100 Award winners.

Executive Mosaic is now preparing for even more participation and engagement as it celebrates the Wash100 Award’s tenth anniversary.

Submit your nominations today at Wash100.com, and stay tuned for the 2023 Wash100 Award winners announcement in January!

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White House Appoints Anjana Rajan Assistant National Cyber Director for Tech Security
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White House Appoints Anjana Rajan Assistant National Cyber Director for Tech Security

Anjana Rajan, a technologist and an entrepreneur, has joined the White House’s Office of the National Cyber Director as assistant director for technology security, she announced Tuesday in a LinkedIn post.

She held a short stint as entrepreneur in residence at Cornell Tech prior to her appointment at the White House.

Previously, Rajan was the first chief technology officer of anti-human trafficking nonprofit organization Polaris, where she conceptualized the organization’s vision for web3 and human rights, as well as its strategy for responding to disinformation threats from extremist groups.

From 2012 to 2017, she held the CTO post at Callisto, a social enterprise that develops software used to fight sexual assault and professional sexual coercion.

Rajan also worked across government projects while at Palantir Technologies as a deployment strategist for the Middle East and served as a technologist at Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Healthcare Innovation business.

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Marcus Moffet Promoted to Cisco’s VP of Engineering, Public Sector; Eric Knipp Quoted
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Marcus Moffet Promoted to Cisco’s VP of Engineering, Public Sector; Eric Knipp Quoted

Cisco veteran Marcus Moffet has been elevated from his previous role as senior systems engineer director to vice president of engineering for the company’s U.S. public sector.

In his new position, Moffet will guide a team of over five hundred engineering leaders, systems engineers and architects in identifying business and mission demands and developing secure, capable platforms to aid the digital business ventures of Cisco’s public sector customers, the San Jose, California-based company announced on Tuesday.

“Marc exemplifies the absolute best of systems engineering leadership at Cisco: technical excellence, selfless leadership, and a constant drive to make himself and his team better,” emphasized Eric Knipp, vice president of systems engineering in the Americas at Cisco.

He also commented on his respect for Moffet as both a colleague and a friend.

With over two decades of experience working at Cisco, Moffet is well-versed in the public sector, enterprise and commercial business areas. Beginning as a systems engineer, he has climbed the ranks of management positions with increasing responsibilities throughout his time at the company.

Moffet has also received two management awards and one achievement award during his extensive career with Cisco and holds a Cisco Certified Internetworking Certification.

“Cisco’s Systems Engineers are the best in the business, and there are very few things outside of seeing my family thrive, that offer the satisfaction of leading this elite team,” Moffet said.

Before joining the company, Moffet held an advanced systems engineer position with 3Com. He also served in the U.S. Air Force as a Tech Controller stationed at Clark Air Base in the Philippines and Gunter Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.

During his eight-year military career, Moffet received numerous awards including Clark Base Airman of the Year and multiple commendations. Additionally, he was awarded an achievement medal as one of the Clark Air Base Ash Warriors who decided to stay behind to sustain base communications and decommission the facility after it was severely damaged in the Mt. Pinatubo eruption. 

He also has a long history of volunteer work, continuing to serve both Hunters for the Hungry of America and Habitat for Humanity for over twenty years. More recently, he began volunteering for Natchez Community Stewpot.

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Seagate Government Solutions, Cigent Technology Announce Secure Storage Drive Partnership; Mike Moritzkat Quoted
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Seagate Government Solutions, Cigent Technology Announce Secure Storage Drive Partnership; Mike Moritzkat Quoted

Seagate Government Solutions and Cigent Technology have partnered and unveiled their collaborative Barracuda 515 M.2 solid state drive to enhance data protection into specific Seagate storage devices through Cigent’s cybersecurity firmware.

Seagate CEO and GM Mike Moritzkat expressed the organization’s excitement in partnering with Cigent in providing a secure client drive that meets important federal government certification requirements while also expressing how the partnership with Cigent is another step in Seagate’s legacy of delivering secure products to the US Government and its affiliates.

The technology for the Barracuda 515 M.2 uses insider detection to produce extensive data access logs in a secure storage device area that cannot be wiped. It also uses block-level verification to confirm that all drive data is completely wiped after a successful erasure attempt.

Cigent’s firmware ensures greater security standards and options even if the device itself has been compromised by physical or virtual attacks. The firmware uses automated threat response that blocks adversaries from bypassing its protections and gaining access to sensitive information.

“Our alliance with SGS makes it easy for SGS’s storage partners to deliver data security to customers that require advanced endpoint data protection,” said Cigent CEO John Benkert.

The company’s Barracuda 515 M.2 SSDs were validated as meeting the Federal Information Processing Standards, which lists a number of government security requirements for data and its encryption, in September. It has also been added to the National Information Assurance Partnership Common Criteria Product Evaluation list.

The collaboration will expand Seagate’s work in advancing storage solutions alongside an additional partnership with Ball Aerospace announced earlier this year. As agreed upon in a Memorandum of Understanding, the two organizations will develop storage and data processing technology for use in space.

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CISA, NSA Unveil Recommended Security Practices for Software Suppliers
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CISA, NSA Unveil Recommended Security Practices for Software Suppliers

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the National Security Agency have jointly published a recommended security practices guide intended for software suppliers.

The document, titled “Securing the Software Supply Chain: Recommended Practices Guide for Suppliers,” outlines suggested procedures for software security checks and vulnerability response and management, the NSA said Monday.

NSA said that software suppliers act as a link between customers and developers and must implement additional security features to eliminate vulnerabilities.

The guidance was developed through the Enduring Security Framework, a public-private partnership that develops guidelines for securing the U.S. critical infrastructure and improving national security.

The framework is the second portion of a three-part joint publication series from ESF. The partnership released a version of the guidance for software developers in September and will unveil an edition for software customers in the future.

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Technology Modernization Fund Invests in AbilityOne’s Procurement List Software Enhancement; Clare Martorana Quoted
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Technology Modernization Fund Invests in AbilityOne’s Procurement List Software Enhancement; Clare Martorana Quoted

The U.S. AbilityOne Commission will receive investment from the Technology Modernization Fund to upgrade its software that connects the federal government with employers of individuals who are blind or severely disabled.

The General Services Administration said Monday the TMF investment will fund enhancements to the Procurement List Information Management System including improvements to system security and accessibility.

AbilityOne Commission maintains a Procurement List of products and services available to government agencies.

“During the pandemic, the AbilityOne program has been pivotal in keeping the federal government and U.S. military operating through nationwide surge to meet exponential increases in demand,” said Clare Martorana, federal chief information officer and chair of the TMF board.

Martorana, a 2022 Wash100 Award winner, added that the $1.78 million investment from TMF will enable AbilityOne to ensure the continued provision of critical services to government agencies.

TMF is an investment program that funds technology modernization projects across the federal government.

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Doug O’Donnell Named Acting IRS Commissioner
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Doug O’Donnell Named Acting IRS Commissioner

Doug O’Donnell, the deputy commissioner for services and enforcement at the Internal Revenue Service, has been appointed to serve as acting head of the agency.

Charles Rettig, the outgoing IRS commissioner, said in a statement published Friday that O’Donnell will temporarily take the helm at the agency until the Senate confirms a permanent commissioner.

Rettig has been leading the revenue service since 2018 and will formally end his term on Nov. 12.

He said that O’Donnell will collaborate with Jeff Tribiano, deputy commissioner for operations, and other senior officials “to continue work on the Inflation Reduction Act provisions, including efforts related to IRS transformation, implementation of green provisions and other new tax law.”

In a separate statement, Janet Yellen, secretary of the Department of the Treasury, said O’Donnell will guide IRS’ work as it embarks on a transformative period of modernization.

O’Donnell has held various positions of increasing responsibility during his nearly four-decade career at the IRS, including as commissioner of the IRS Large Business and International Division.

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ODNI: FY 2022 Appropriations for National Intell Program Hit $65.7B
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ODNI: FY 2022 Appropriations for National Intell Program Hit $65.7B

Congress appropriated $65.7 billion in total funds for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s National Intelligence Program during fiscal year 2022.

NIP is one of the two major components of the U.S. intelligence budget and covers all projects, activities and initiatives of the Intelligence Community and other IC programs designated by the DNI and the U.S. president or the DNI and the head of an agency or department.

ODNI said Monday the appropriated budget figure for 2022 NIP includes supplemental funding.

The FY 2022 appropriated figure reflects a $3.4 billion increase from the requested budget for NIP activities – $62.3 billion – in the previous fiscal year and shows an 8 percent rise from the top-line figure allocated to NIP in FY 2021.

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