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US, UK Militaries Agree to Cooperate More in Space
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US, UK Militaries Agree to Cooperate More in Space

The U.S Space Command has signed a memorandum of agreement with its U.K. counterpart to increase their collaborative military efforts in space.

USSPACECOM said Wednesday it will work with the U.K. Space Command on improving information sharing, synchronizing space requirements and identifying potential joint initiatives under the non-legally binding framework.

The efforts are aimed at securing operational freedom in space and enhancing resource use and mission assurance and resilience in the domain outside Earth.

Gen. James Dickinson, commander of USSPACECOM, and Vice-Marshal Paul Godfrey, commander of UKSpaceCom, inked the deal during the 37th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The MOU followed a statement of intent from the Department of Defense and the Ministry of Defence in December.

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Army Lt. Gen. Thomas Todd III: Innovation Needed for Future Military Success
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Army Lt. Gen. Thomas Todd III: Innovation Needed for Future Military Success

Lt. Gen. Thomas Todd III, chief innovation officer of the U.S. Army Futures Command, has called for breakthrough technologies in the aviation sphere to ensure the future success of the service branch. 

He told attendees of the 2022 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit in Tennesse that ambitious innovations such as air-launched effects and directed energy weapons would help the military secure decisive victories, the Army said Wednesday.

In line with his innovative idea, Todd, also AFC’s deputy commanding general for acquisition and systems and chief innovation officer, shared with attending aviation leaders, experts and aficionados that his command has been working on experiments every year to help suggest integrated capabilities to leaders annually.

“Speed, range, convergence, decision dominance and overmatch — we work hard each and every day at Army Futures Command to make that a reality,” explained Todd.

He pointed out that partnerships with the industry are necessary to complete innovative projects such as the next-generation aircraft, long-range fires and advanced aviation and missile technologies.

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NASA Taps 5 Universities to Plan Experiments for ISS
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NASA Taps 5 Universities to Plan Experiments for ISS

NASA has selected five universities to design research experiments that will take place on the International Space Station.

Each awardee will receive approximately $100,000 to formulate these experiments under the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research or EPSCoR program, the space agency said Thursday.

EPSCoR, led by Kennedy Space Center, aims to extend opportunities to institutions that do not normally have the jurisdiction to participate in aerospace research efforts.

Projects under EPSCoR align with NASA’s efforts, including Artemis, to pursue deep-space exploration and long-term lunar presence.

Among awardees, the University of Nebraska will demonstrate its robotic technology designed to perform surgery in space. This project aims to determine how much force is needed for an operation with this technology in a microgravity environment.

The awardees are:

  • Montana State University, Bozeman
  • New Mexico State University, Las Cruces
  • University of Delaware, Newark
  • University of Idaho, Moscow
  • University of Nebraska, Omaha
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Air Force Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien Nominated as Joint Staff CIO, J6 Director
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Air Force Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien Nominated as Joint Staff CIO, J6 Director

Lloyd Austin, secretary of the Department of Defense and a 2022 Wash100 Award recipient, has announced the nomination of Air Force Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien to serve as chief information officer and director for command, control, communications and computers at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

O’Brien, who serves as deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and cyber effects operations at the U.S. Air Force headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, is also nominated for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

In her current role, O’Brien oversees six directorates and supports the Air Force’s 73,000-person intelligence and cyber operations team.

If confirmed by the Senate, O’Brien will replace Lt. Gen. Dennis Crall, a fellow 2022 Wash100 Award winner, who has held the role since 2020.

The Joint Staff J6 advises the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on advancing cyber defense, interoperability and command and control capabilities to maintain national security.

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Heidi Shyu Highlights Need for Strong R&D Foundation, Offers Updates on Critical Tech Areas
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Heidi Shyu Highlights Need for Strong R&D Foundation, Offers Updates on Critical Tech Areas

Heidi Shyu, undersecretary for research and engineering at the Department of Defense and a 2022 Wash100 Award winner, on Wednesday appeared before a Senate Armed Services Committee subpanel to discuss DOD’s efforts to advance innovation and deliver capabilities to warfighters.

Shyu told lawmakers about the need to have a robust research and development foundation in order for the U.S. military to maintain its technological advantage.

“We must make a commitment to science and technology, especially in basic research. We also have to attract and retain the best and brightest people while supplying them with world-class research and development infrastructure,” Shyu told members of the Senate panel’s emerging threats and capabilities subcommittee.

“And the Department will rapidly prototype and perform joint experimentation and collaborate across the technology ecosystem,” she added.

In a written testimony, Shyu provided updates on developments in 5G, hypersonics, biotechnology, microelectronics and other critical technology areas in support of the National Defense Strategy.

She said more than 65 5G-related contracts involving over 100 companies have been awarded to date, and DOD is conducting experiments with seven 5G use cases to help address warfighting requirements in smart warehouse and logistics, augmented reality and dynamic spectrum sharing, among others.

For hypersonics, Shyu said the department is expediting plans to facilitate rapid development of hypersonic weapons to enable the deployment of operational prototypes by the mid-2020s.

She also highlighted the need to improve partnerships between public and private sectors and expand collaboration with academic institutions, allies and partners.

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GSA to Roll Out Cloud Blanket Purchase Agreement; Sonny Hashmi Quoted
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GSA to Roll Out Cloud Blanket Purchase Agreement; Sonny Hashmi Quoted

The General Services Administration plans to introduce a new blanket purchase agreement, dubbed Ascend, that will focus on commercial cloud technologies, FCW reported Wednesday.

Sonny Hashmi, commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service, said the Ascend BPA is part of the agency’s efforts to reduce burden on agency customers and administration costs for cloud service providers.

“It’s certainly in the early days, but the idea of this multi-purpose, multi-award BPA will be to allow agencies to acquire and implement secure commercial cloud service offerings and ultimately to deliver solutions that they need,” Hashmi, a previous Wash100 Award winner, said at a summit Wednesday.

“Ascend is going to be designed to allow agencies to not only plan and execute cloud acquisitions … but it’s going to have built-in minimum thresholds for security, data ownership, common terms and conditions,” he added.

The Ascend BPA has three pools: infrastructure as a service and platform as a service; software as a service; and cloud professional services.

Hashmi said new pools and sub-pools may be added to the BPA as the agency rolls out the vehicle in an agile method and factors in changes in requirements.

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Adm. Linda Fagan Nominated to Lead US Coast Guard
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Adm. Linda Fagan Nominated to Lead US Coast Guard

Adm. Linda Fagan, vice commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, has been nominated by President Joe Biden to lead the military branch as commandant.

If confirmed, she would be the first woman to lead the service branch and is expected to succeed the retiring Adm. Karl Schultz in June, the Coast Guard said Tuesday.

Fagan carries out the commandant’s strategic intent, serves as component acquisition executive and oversees internal organizational governance as vice commandant.

She previously served as commander of Pacific Area and Coast Guard Defense Force West. Her more than three-decade career in service also included time as deputy commandant for operations, policy and capability and head of the First Coast Guard District and deputy director of operations for Headquarters, U.S. Northern Command.

“Over Admiral Fagan’s 36 years in the Coast Guard, she has served on seven continents, was previously Commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area, and is the officer with the longest service record in the Marine Safety Field,” Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and a previous Wash100 Award winner, said in a statement published Tuesday.

Biden also nominated Vice Adm. Steven Poulin, commander of Coast Guard Atlantic Area, to serve as the branch’s vice commandant. 

Poulin, who would succeed Fagan if confirmed, also serves as commander for Coast Guard Defense Force East. His previous roles include director of operations at U.S. Southern Command and judge advocate general and chief counsel of the Coast Guard.

Top Government Contracting Events for 2022
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Top Government Contracting Events for 2022

Department of Homeland securities, DoD agencies, Department of Health and Human Services, National Security, and other federal agencies offer federal government contracting opportunities to any businesses willing to work with them.

Federal government contracting businesses mostly post contracting opportunities on different websites commonly battled out by large or small business government contractors. However, sometimes they announce working opportunities through virtual or in-person events.

The top government contracting events are listed below that you shall never miss out on. So read along to learn more!

Second annual air force: IT plans and priorities forum

Second annual air force: IT plans and priorities forum

📅 March 23, 2022

🕑 9:00 AM EST

📍 Online| ON 24

The Air Force of the United States is currently working to improve data and cybersecurity solutions. The service department also leverages technologies to strengthen its personnel, update legacy infrastructure, and face global challenges on the modern battlefield.

The GovCon Wire’s 2nd annual air force: IT plans and priorities forum aims to hear the public and private sector’s thoughts as they discuss the strategic priorities, advances in technology, and creative initiatives of the Air Force.

Vaccines Summit Boston

Vaccines Summit Boston

📅 March 28-30, 2022

🕑 TBA

📍 Hilton Boston/Woburn, Boston, Massachusetts || Virtual

We all know that during the pandemic, the healthcare and medical field served as the frontline in battling the Covid 19. Some of the biggest government contractors and companies get involved with the manufacturing and logistics of the Covid-19 vaccines.

The Vaccine Summit Boston is looking forward to bringing together the leading pharma and biotech industry experts, government contractors, academicians, and decision-makers who are passionate about turning ideas about global issues into solutions.

By joining the conference, you might get a chance to have a business relationship with other industry leaders. So save the date and make networks while staying updated on the industry news.

World Congress

World Congress

📅 July 17-20, 2022

🕑 TBA

📍 Chicago, Illinois

Gaining knowledge about the government contracting industry can be overwhelming, especially if you are just starting in the field. That is why by attending conferences, you will be able to get the latest update on the industry news, which can be helpful to your growth. By joining the world congress, you will learn how to engage and build a network with over two thousand contract management, procurement, and acquisition professionals.

National Homeland Security Conference

National Homeland Security Conference

📅 July 17-20, 2022

🕑7:00 AM

📍 Chicago, Illinois

With the mission of boosting the defense system of the United States, security experts from different fields will gather at the National Homeland Security Conference.

 

Thousands of audiences, including federal agencies, nonprofit groups, business owners, and important decision-makers, are available to network with or even consider as business partners for future projects in the United States.

2022 GMIS Meets

2022 GMIS Meets

📅 August 21-24, 2022

🕑 TBA

📍 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The GMIS Meets, organized by a community of public sector IT professionals, intends to bring together hundreds of industry executives, vendors, and government IT workers for networking and learning.

 

GMIS Meets is a three-day event where you can listen to speeches from renowned industry experts, network with your peers, and participate in open discussions to exchange ideas and useful knowledge.

Scientia Meetings: Vaccines Summit

Scientia Meetings: Vaccines Summit

📅 October 11-13, 2022

🕑 TBA

📍 Washington DC

With the rise in the attention of the healthcare and medical field, it is not surprising that a new vaccine summit is in the event lineup. Even though Scientia Meeting: Vaccine Summit will be organized by a different event planner, the concept of the conference is also to provide industry knowledge and possible networking.

 

By joining the event, you will have the chance to learn how the healthcare and medical field will be working in the future, which can be an advantage to you as you prepare your products or services in the government contracting industry.

 

Federal contracting events are perfect for learning about the industry and the latest news. This also enables you to network with other executives or personnel from different federal agencies. But always keep in mind that attending events may cost you time, money, and effort, so make sure that you choose the best where you will benefit a lot and always make the most out of it.

 

We are just a few months passed from the fiscal year 2022. We cannot conclude if more events will be coming, but listed above are the most-awaited and top government contracting events. Meanwhile, you may want to equip yourself first with the things you need to know about preparing for a government contracting event.

 

How to prepare for a government contracting event?

How to prepare for a government contracting event?

Complete your registration as a government contractor

Complete your registration as a government contractor

Before attending federal government contracting events, the first thing you shall do is register your business as part of the federal contractors.

You may refer to this article or the following to know how you could effectively get into the government contracting industry.

  1. Government Contracting Guide: What You Need to Know
  2. How to Bid On & Win Government Contracts: Winning Strategies
  3. How to Write a Government Proposal for a Government Contract
  4. Government Contracting Guide: What You Need to Know

Once you successfully register your business, you may head over to the official website of the Small Business Administration to know if you are eligible for the particular program for small companies. You may also want to consult a government contracts attorneys to ensure that you comply with all the documents needed.

Know if the agencies and speakers at the event are relevant to you

Know if the agencies and speakers at the event are relevant to you

It will be a significant disadvantage if you attend an event that does not align with the industry that you are into. The reason is those federal government departments often scout government contractors to work with during an event. So make sure that before you register for an event, examine if the agencies or speakers in the event are related to what you do.

Prepare your marketing materials

Prepare your marketing materials

Many people do not know about attending events because it can be your way of selling or marketing yourself and your business.

When attending government contracting events, make sure that you always have a business card in your pocket; in this way, you can easily exchange information with a person you are talking with.

Keep it short

Keep it short

Have you heard the term “elevator speech” before? An elevator speech or pitch is a short description of the product, company, idea, or any thoughts that explains the concept in a way that any listener can understand it in a short period of time.

In the business industry, every second counts, so when pitching to another executive or event attendee, always keep it short but with concrete details. Having an engaging pitch will help your company’s products or services into a great success.

Follow-up business leads after the event

Follow-up business leads after the event

After the event, what you need to do is to gather all the business cards that you have collected and reach out to the person in that piece of card.

However, make sure that right after you talk to that person, it will be best to take a note of something about them on the back of their card. In that way, you will be able to remind your conversation at the conference, this will make composing an email or sending messages much easier.

Where to find the latest and upcoming events?

Where to find the latest and upcoming events?

Many platforms provide conference information about different federal government contracting industry events. Listed below are the leading platforms hosting government contracting conference and bringing the latest govcon industry news.

GovCon Wire

GovCon Wire Logo

The GovCon Wire is one of the leading sources for breaking business news in the federal contracting industry and publishing the most critical government contracts awards, merger and acquisition transactions, changes with the federal contractors or government market in real-time.

Potomac Officers Club

Potomac Officers Club Logo

The Potomac Officers Club is a premium membership program exclusively for federal contracting executives. The platform also hosts several conferences focusing on the trends and opportunities in the defense, cybersecurity intelligence, homeland security industries, or artificial intelligence.

The Potomac officers club, owned and operated by Executive Mosaic, publishes daily updates about the government contracts industry and other business-related business.

Executive Business

Executive Business Logo

Executive Business, also known as ExecutiveBiz or EBiz, always gives an update on the federal government contracting executive-level activities.

ExecutiveBiz constantly remains on top of what’s impacting government contracting and how contractors prepare their businesses to successfully win government contracts and other company that the federal government can offer.

The platform also helps construct a complete image of the government contracting industry by publishing detailed information on medium-sized business news, overseas contracting activities, and technology developments.

By subscribing to ExecutiveBiz, you may gain business knowledge and ways to improve your company’s logistics and overall operation.

 

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Industry Veteran Shawn Wells Appointed to Accenture Federal Cybersecurity Function; MG Aaron Faulkner Quoted
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Industry Veteran Shawn Wells Appointed to Accenture Federal Cybersecurity Function; MG Aaron Faulkner Quoted

Former CrowdStrike executive Shawn Wells has been added to the cybersecurity division at Accenture’s federal business.

In his new role, Wells will leverage over 20 years of elite cybersecurity knowledge and experience, the Arlington, Virginia-based company said Wednesday.

Aaron Faulkner, managing director of the Accenture Federal Services cybersecurity practice, said that Wells possesses “a successful track record of solutions architecture across all sectors of the federal government.”

“His ability to make cutting-edge, commercial innovations enterprise-ready for federal agencies will prove an outstanding value-add for our client portfolio,” Faulkner continued.

The executive’s new position will require him to utilize his familiarity with the cyber threat anticipation, constructing systems to combat attacks and scaling the overall program.

Wells began his career as a technician at the web host startup Toadnet before moving on to the public sector, working for a year as a computer programmer and Java/PHP developer for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Later on, he began a 12-year stint at Red Hat, where he worked primarily with the company’s government-facing business. He held positions such as practice lead of global system Z sales, strategy and marketing and director of innovation programs in the U.S. public sector wing.

Wells ended his time at Red Hat as senior principal and chief security strategy specialist for U.S. public sector clients, for which he was awarded WashingtonExec Magazine’s Pinnacle Award for Cyber Industry Executive of the Year in 2019.

Most recently, Wells was global vice president of solution architecture at CrowdStrike, where he oversaw and directed the international technical presales organization, which is responsible for all of the company’s partner sourced revenue. He also presided over a worldwide, multi-continent solution architecture leadership.

“I particularly look forward to advancing Accenture Federal Services’ continued investments to commercialize and drive cutting-edge solution architectures at scale,” Wells commented.

The appointment of Wells follows AFS’ February hire of Michael Scruggs as lead of applied intelligence.

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Deltek Initiates Computer Science Scholarship Program at George Mason; CEO Mike Corkery Quoted
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Deltek Initiates Computer Science Scholarship Program at George Mason; CEO Mike Corkery Quoted

Software and information services company Deltek has contributed a significant donation and began a scholarship program for computer science students only with George Mason University.

The Deltek Scholars Program will divvy up the company’s initial $100,000 investment for up to eight first-generation college students enrolled in Mason’s software engineering master’s program, the company said Tuesday.

“Mason is a proven talent incubator for the Northern Virginia region,” said Mike Corkery, Deltek’s CEO and president.

Corkery went on to share that the company intends to continually grow the amount of Mason interns and graduates of the university on staff. He said this is in line with a mission of strengthening northern Virginia’s information technology bona fides.

The scholarship will create a direct pipeline to internships at Deltek for its recipients, as well as enable networking and career opportunities and pay for the financial demands of students’ capstone projects. Funds will be distributed starting in Fall 2022.

The donation is part of a longstanding partnership between the company and George Mason. Corkery is a participant in the school’s President’s Innovation Advisory Council, which is composed of industry, community and government figures helping to direct expansion in Arlington’s Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, where a new campus is currently being erected.

In addition, Donald de Laski, the founder of Deltek, served on Mason’s board and supported the university for a number of years. De Laski and his wife, Kathleen, have a performing arts building named after them on Mason’s Fairfax campus.

Just as this new scholarship venture attempts to uplift first-generation students, Deltek also drew focus to diverse workforce objectives last month when its analysts highlighted new opportunities for women-owned small businesses.

Ashley Sanderson, senior manager of research at Deltek, spotlighted three potential contracts available for these businesses, including a $1 billion contract tasking information technology services for the Defense Information Systems Agency.

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