Smarter Gov Tech, Stronger MerITocracy

As adoption of cloud services increases across Federal agencies, it is logical to assume that cloud spending will increase as well. However, a new report from IDC Insights indicates a decrease in cloud spending in fiscal year 2017. […]

Federal agencies with technology problems have one man to go to–Reed Cordish, special assistant to the president for intragovernmental and technology initiatives. […]

The main Federal security certification program designed to accelerate cloud adoption throughout the government has also become an important security standard for the commercial world, according to Cynthia Stoddard, senior vice president and chief information officer of Adobe. […]

Doug Bourgeois speaking during his panel on optimizing data centers
Happy Employee

The best cloud companies to work for all make an effort to create a culture of employee engagement and success. Forbes released a list of the top cloud companies to work for, including M-Files, Apprenda, Zerto, OutSystems, Mendix, and DocuSign. MeriTalk reached out to them in order to learn the secrets of the best workplaces. […]

Agency chief information officers realize the need to convert from on-premise data centers to the cloud, but still find it challenging to convince agency heads that it’s a necessary step. David Bray, CIO of the Federal Communications Commission, said Feb. 8 at the Cloud Computing Caucus Advisory Group meeting, “If you are wedded to legacy systems you are trying to turn a battleship very, very slowly.” […]

Collaboration and a willingness to learn new practices are the best ways to address cybersecurity concerns surrounding cloud computing, according to IT leaders from across the country. Greg Urban, chief operations officer of Maryland, said that a strong core of talent makes a big difference when exploring cloud capabilities. […]

Congress will pursue IT modernization legislation just as meticulously as in the last Congress, in large part due to the high retention of active representatives in the last election, Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., said at the Cloud Computing Caucus Advisory Group’s Destination Cloud event. […]

Less than six months into her tenure as the Department of Veterans Affairs’ chief information security officer, Roopangi Kadakia has been tasked to lead the agency’s cloud efforts. Dominic Cussatt will take over as acting CISO, according to an internal agency memo obtained by MeriTalk. […]

Companies that get the most financial benefits from cloud adoption all carry certain characteristics, a survey from CloudHealth Technologies found. […]

Oracle announced that it will open six new cloud startup accelerator programs for companies around the world. Oracle will begin programs in Bristol, England; Delhi–NCR, India; Mumbai, India; Paris; São Paulo, and Singapore, as well as Tel Aviv, which MeriTalk previously reported. […]

IBM has been awarded a cloud solution contract by the U.S. Army potentially worth $62 million over five years, to build, manage, and operate a cloud for the Army’s Redstone Arsenal. […]

Oracle, a U.S.-based company, began a new program in Israel to promote startup cloud computing companies. Oracle will look for five companies later this year to participate in the program that includes six months of mentoring, new technology, a co-working space, access to Oracle’s customers and partners, and free Oracle Cloud credits. […]

Microsoft announced that its Azure and Office 365 cloud service became the first commercial cloud to be awarded Impact Level 5 DoD Provisional Authorization by the Defense Information Systems Agency, which allows the cloud to store the most sensitive, controlled, unclassified information. Microsoft also announced general availability of the service to all validated Department of Defense customers. […]

General Dynamics Information Technology is on a mission–to help agencies make sense of cloud computing. Cloud migration can be challenging–agencies are constrained by regulations, pressed by tight budgets, and limited by legacy systems. But, those anxieties don’t need to stifle innovation. […]

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