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Stacey Dixon: Intelligence Community to Unveil Science and Tech Strategy
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Stacey Dixon: Intelligence Community to Unveil Science and Tech Strategy

Stacey Dixon, principal deputy director of national intelligence and a two-time Wash100 Award winner, said the intelligence community is set to release a science and technology strategy that could be used by industry and academia as a roadmap for developing tech capabilities that IC needs.

The IC science and tech strategy will help “articulate some of the capabilities that we’re looking for whether it is in the realm of satellites or whether it is analytic tools or whether it is other collection things, other sensors that we need developed,” Dixon said.

She said the community has innovation centers aimed at facilitating interactions with industry and academic institutions at an unclassified level to help the IC achieve its missions through the development of capabilities.

When it comes to cybersecurity, Dixon said the IC is in the process of making more investments in resources to combat cyberthreats and recruiting professionals in the field.

Dixon noted that the community works with the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security and educates people by sharing information on threats to technology to help protect intellectual property.

She also mentioned the IC’s efforts to counter authoritarian adversaries and its use of monitoring capabilities to gather data about climate change.

 

Do you know a deserving and accomplished Government or GovCon Executive deserving the recognition of the industry’s highest honor? 

Visit Wash100.com to submit your nominations and learn more about the highly prestigious history of the Wash100 Award and the most recent class of winners from 2021.

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Former OMB Cyber Chief Ross Nodurft Named Exec Director of Alliance for Digital Innovation
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Former OMB Cyber Chief Ross Nodurft Named Exec Director of Alliance for Digital Innovation

Ross Nodurft, former head of the Office of Management and Budget’s cyber team, has been named executive director of a Washington D.C.-based association representing commercial technology providers that aim to bring innovation into the government.

Nodurft joined the Alliance for Digital Innovation with the goal of working with coalition members to promote cloud investment, technology acquisition practices, cybersecurity and talent development in the public sector, ADI said Wednesday.

The government technology sector veteran has served as senior director of cybersecurity services at law firm Venable since January 2019.

From June 2015 to December 2017, Nodurft was cyber chief at OMB where coordinated incident response efforts, implemented cybersecurity policies and created a risk-based budgeting tool for federal agencies.

He also worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative director for a House lawmaker, a senior policy adviser for a senator and a professional staffer at the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee.

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Lockheed-Fincantieri Team Delivers Navy’s 11th Freedom-Variant LCS; Rear Adm. Casey Moton Quoted
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Lockheed-Fincantieri Team Delivers Navy’s 11th Freedom-Variant LCS; Rear Adm. Casey Moton Quoted

The team of Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine handed the 11th Freedom-variant littoral combat ship (LCS) over to the U.S. Navy after completion of the modified combining gear system tests.

Naval Sea Systems Command said Thursday the acceptance of USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul delivery from the industry team at a Marinette, Wisconsin, facility is the first vessel in its class is the first Freedom-variant ship to undergo a system modification that addressed a defect.

The LCS 21 vessel is the Navy’s second vessel named after the Twin Cities. Defense News reports the Lockheed-led shipbuilding team worked to resolve a classwide flaw in the bearings that was discovered when the service tried a full-power operation.

“Based on the results of the land-based and at-sea testing, both Lockheed Martin and the Navy assessed that the combining gear design modification is satisfactory and, once installed, will allow unrestricted operations of Freedom-variant ships,” Rear Adm. Casey Moton, program executive officer for unmanned and small combatants at the Navy.

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Former State Secretary Madeleine Albright Sworn in to Chair Defense Policy Board
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Former State Secretary Madeleine Albright Sworn in to Chair Defense Policy Board

Madeleine Albright, formerly the secretary of state, has been sworn in to chair the Defense Policy Board, a group dedicated to advising defense leadership on policy.

Albright, the country’s 64th state secretary, is now the board’s first chair since Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin completed his review on the Pentagon’s advisory boards, the Department of Defense said Thursday.

The newly appointed chair will lead efforts to advise the secretary of defense and his deputy with regard to policy, based on specific tasks. She became the secretary of state in 1997 after a tenure of representing the U.S. in the United Nations.

“I look forward to partnering with my colleagues on the DPB to offer our independent advice on the full range of policy issues confronting the department,” Albright said.

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Baird’s Global Investment Banking Business Taps Durc Savini to Lead New Restructuring Advisory Practice
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Baird’s Global Investment Banking Business Taps Durc Savini to Lead New Restructuring Advisory Practice

Baird has appointed Durc Savini as managing director and global head of the new restructuring advisory practice for the firm’s Global Investment Banking business segment.

In his new position, Savini will build and launch Baird’s New York-based restructuring practice, which will focus on advising corporate and financial sponsor clients on structural challenges and will expand the company’s existing advisory services and offerings, Baird said Thursday.

Brian Doyal, co-head of Baird’s Global Investment Banking business said of the new restructuring practice executive, “He’s a highly respected restructuring industry veteran with more than 30 years of experience, and we’re looking forward to launching and growing the Restructuring Advisory practice under his leadership.”

Savini brings to his new role extensive experience in financial restructuring, liability management, and mergers and acquisitions across a wide range of industries.

He joins Baird from Guggenheim Securities, where he served for over five years as senior managing director and as a member of the company’s restructuring advisory practice.

Previously, Savini also served as managing director and head of Peter J. Solomon Company’s restructuring and recapitalization group, in addition to his senior restructuring roles at Miller Buckfire and Wasserstein Perella.

Co-head of the Global Investment Banking business at Baird, Brian McDonagh cited the firm’s “record” year-to-date performance as a testament to the team’s capabilities, and he noted that Savini will enhance Baird’s offerings as the company continues to drive expansion efforts.

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DIU, Partners Release Report on Space Industry Improvement; Gen. John Raymond Quoted
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DIU, Partners Release Report on Space Industry Improvement; Gen. John Raymond Quoted

The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) partnered with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the U.S. Space Force to report recommendations for improving the space industrial base. 

The 2021 State of the Space Industrial Base Report builds on input provided by 250 industry experts in July, DIU said Thursday.

The report aims to inform the National Space Council, other government stakeholders and investors on space’s relevance to U.S. infrastructure, manufacturing, climate change, workforce and foreign policy.

Experts recommend the government create an inclusive cislunar economy, establish internet for space, build infrastructure for space logistics, set national priorities and apply space technologies that help address climate change.

The report also includes recommendations to create a hybrid space architecture based on existing commercial satellite technologies. This architecture would support the Department of Defense’s Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) concept, which envisions an integrated network of situational awareness sensors across all battlefield domains.

“The recommendations, if followed, have the power to unite and unleash the full innovation, technological and industrial capability of the U.S. and the benefit of all humanity,” said Gen. John Raymond, chief of space operations and a three-time Wash100 winner.

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CGI Selected to Modernize GSA Acquisition Process, Develop Common Catalog Platform; Stefan Becker Quoted
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CGI Selected to Modernize GSA Acquisition Process, Develop Common Catalog Platform; Stefan Becker Quoted

CGI has booked a task order under the General Services Administration’s CIO Modernization and Enterprise Transformation (COMET) contract vehicle to modernize the agency’s acquisition process by developing the Common Catalog Platform.

Under the potential five-year, $19 million task order, CGI will leverage its cloud-native development, DevSecOps, and human-centered design capabilities to develop and lead a phased implementation of an Application Programming Interface-accessible, web-based application for managing catalog data, the company said Friday.

“We look forward to expanding our partnership with GSA to support their core mission of helping government agencies procure the goods and services they need to execute their missions,” said Stefan Becker, senior vice president of regulatory agencies for CGI.

The CCP is meant to replace the GSA’s legacy desktop-based Schedule Input Program and will provide a centralized platform for catalog management activities as well as increase efficiency for Multiple Award Schedule holders and Federal Acquisition Service staff.

The new application is also expected to improve usability, reduce process complexity and improve information quality for vendors managing catalogs and GSA customer applicants.

This task order follows CGI’s recent win of a spot on the GSA’s ASTRO contract. CGI was selected for the two pools of space and development/systems integration under the ASTRO IDIQ.

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NSA, CISA Issue New Guidance on Securing 5G Pods; Jorge Laurel Quoted
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NSA, CISA Issue New Guidance on Securing 5G Pods; Jorge Laurel Quoted

The National Security Agency (NSA) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) jointly published guidance on how to mitigate cyber threats targeting 5G cloud. 

The guidance, titled Securely Isolate Network Resources, addresses threats to “pods” or 5G networks that are container-centric or hybrid container/virtual, NSA said Thursday.

The document, part of the Enduring Security Framework (ESF), tackles multiple cloud security aspects such as limiting access, applying real-time threat detection and preventing resource contention.

“5G changes the traditional mobile network operations architecture, allowing for the core network to be moved away from proprietary hardware and software to a modular cloud-native infrastructure,” said Jorge Laurel, NSA project director for ESF, a public-private working group that the guidance is part of.

ESF’s first guidance provided best practices on how to detect, prevent and mitigate harmful cyber activity within 5G cloud infrastructure.

GAO: Bid Protests Fell 12% in Fiscal 2021
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GAO: Bid Protests Fell 12% in Fiscal 2021

The number of disputed federal contract awards reached 1,897 during the government’s 2021 fiscal year, down 12 percent from the 2,149 cases filed in the preceding year, according to an annual bid protest report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

GAO submitted data to Congress showing FY 2021 was the third year in a row challenges to contract terms or awards have decreased. Procurement law experts at the government audit office have offered explanations for the decline.

Nextgov reported Ralph White and Kenneth Patton, both managing associate general counsels at GAO, attribute the declining protests partly to enhanced debriefing procedures.

Patton told the publication that the debriefing process offers additional information meant to help companies think over a protest.

He also believes the use of indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contracts with provisions allowing agencies to buy goods and services from multiple vendors could reduce the number of federal contracting disputes.

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Executive Order Aims to Cut Worker Turnover in Federal Service Contracts
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Executive Order Aims to Cut Worker Turnover in Federal Service Contracts

President Biden has signed an executive order to improve federal procurement by reducing turnover among workers supporting government functions. 

The new policy will offer workers the right of first refusal when a contract changes hands to cut time and costs spent on recruiting and training new employees, the White House said Thursday.

The order will require new contractors to give workers who performed their jobs well on the previous contract the opportunity to keep their jobs to prevent disruptions during the transition and maintain information security.

The move is also aimed at helping produce a diverse pool of skilled and experienced employees who are already familiar with working for the federal government.

“There are about 2 million service contract workers, covering a range of jobs and responsibilities – from maintenance on military bases to call centers to transportation to research and development,” the EO stated.

However, federal service contract workers are disproportionately women and people of color. The order builds on the policies introduced during the Obama administration and is part of a broader effort of the Biden-Harris administration to advance its equity goals. 

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