Navigating the Single Audit Act and grants management during these times is challenging enough for grant professionals. However, for many governments, simply putting together a strong application for funding can be the most challenging part, especially for those new to grants administration. With more public-sector entities vying for competitive funding, it's important to assemble a strong application that can help your agency stand out from t...

The Congressional Research Service noted a decade ago that, “Intelligence is valuable only if it can be shared with consumers who need it, but, to the extent that it is more widely shared, risks of compromise are enhanced.” That report was prompted in part by 9/11. In the twenty years since, “need to know” has become “need to share” throughout the federal government as agencies have come to realize the value...

Water system design and analysis can be costly, time consuming, and challenging for municipal agencies. The combination of CAD, GIS, simulation and analysis features needed to produce a useful model usually means bouncing between different technologies and platforms. Often, it's a marginal CAD-enabled platform that requires export to a GIS platform, or a limited bolt-on tool that is tied to a GIS platform, neither supporting the iterative need...

The pandemic and great resignation have put talent acquisition and employee retainment front and center for companies and federal agencies alike. Today, there are several emerging technologies that can make a substantial impact on improving recruitment, reducing regrettable attrition, and promoting diversity and inclusion. At the forefront of this innovation is Artificial Intelligence (AI). Yet misconceptions, misunderstandings, and a lack of...

Governments everywhere and at all levels should be applauded for finding ways to meet their citizens’ needs during the pandemic. While many agencies had continuity-of-operations plans in place, no one imagined that every agency would have to act on them at the same time. What made it possible, of course, was the rapid spread of cloud-based technology that enabled government employees to work from their own homes, frequently using their o...

The U.S. military maintains bases in more than 70 countries and territories around the world, some of them in inhospitable or hard-to-reach areas. When a piece of equipment fails – whether a weapon, a radar dish, or something more prosaic like a mess hall stove – getting replacement parts can be difficult and time-consuming, and the delay can cause anything from mild inconvenience to serious problems meeting the mission. Larger bas...

The (ISC)² Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) credential to ensures that cloud security professionals have the required knowledge, skills, and abilities in cloud security design, implementation, architecture, operations, controls, and compliance with regulatory frameworks. The CCSP OnDemand is a self-paced learning solution that covers the 6 domains of the CCSP Common Body of Knowledge (CBK) in order to study for the CCSP examin...

From wildfires and hurricanes to increasing crime rates and the continuing pandemic, public safety organizations at all levels of government find themselves spread thin these days. However, a continued wave of technology innovations can help fill their need for better data, quicker response and effective delivery of services. The move of many public safety organizations to the cloud has opened new options for using and sharing operational data...

Federal agencies have been mandated to adopt a zero-trust architecture, Federal leaders must develop a plan to implement a zero-trust architecture, incorporating as appropriate the migration steps that the National Institute of Standards and Technology has laid out. Agency heads need to describe the steps already completed to move to zero trust, identify activities that will have the most immediate security impact and include a schedule to imp...

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law in November 2021, will unleash a flood of funding for a vast array of construction projects, including electric grid and energy improvements, roads and bridges, public transit, and water systems to name just a few. It is worth celebrating that so much will be repaired, replaced, or new-built. It also highlights a new opportunity to bring digitization to the construction industry, brin...