Government Matters

David Shea, director of the Office of Charge Card Management at the General Services Administration, discusses the agency’s decision to award two contracts for the SmartPay 3 program.

John Johanson, assistant inspector general for investigations in the Office of Inspector General of the Intelligence Community, discusses the unique nature of his office, and how it has handled high-profile whistleblowing cases in recent years.

In this week’s Federal Beat roundtable, Frank Konkel, executive editor at NextGov, Nicole Ogrysko, reporter at Federal News Radio and Billy Mitchell, managing editor at FedScoop, discuss the weeks biggest headlines.

Ari Schwartz, managing director of cybersecurity services for Venable, and Sam Curry, chief security officer for Cybereason, discuss some of the biggest roadblocks to the advancement of artificial intelligence in government.

Tom Fox, vice president of leadership and innovation at the Partnership for Public Service, discusses the impact of DisasterAssistance.gov and what that site portends for government.

Phyllis Schneck, former deputy undersecretary for cybersecurity and communications at the Department of Homeland Security, discusses the push at some agencies to centralize cybersecurity and other IT operations.

Marjorie Censer, editor at Inside Defense and Tony Bertuca, chief editor at Inside the Pentagon, discuss the top stories in the defense community this week.

Dave Wajsgras, president of Intelligence, Information & Services at Raytheon, discussed the convergence of government and the private sector in building out and developing cybersecurity.

Bill Greenwalt, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, discussed the negotiations underway in the Senate on the National Defense Authorization Act.

Michael Child, deputy inspector general for Overseas Contingency Operations at the Department of Defense, discusses the mission of his office and what's included in its investigative portfolio.

Hudson Hollister, executive director of the Data Coalition, discusses the results from a pilot program at the Office of Management and Budget involving data standards.

Deniece Peterson, director of federal market analysis at Deltek, discusses the impact of this fiscal year's fourth-quarter spending on federal information technology.

David Hawkings, senior editor at CQ Roll Call and Sarah Ferris, budget and appropriations reporter at Politico, discussed the budget deal struck in the House and Senate to prevent a government shutdown, provide hurricane relief and increase the debt limit for the next few months.

Melvin Greer, chief data scientist for public sector at Intel Corporation, discusses the future of artificial intelligence in government.

Kathy Conrad, director of digital government for Accenture Federal Services, discusses how agency leaders can make a business case for I.T. transformation at their organization.

Vice Adm. Jan Tighe, deputy chief of naval operations for information warfare and the director of naval intelligence, discusses how her digital warfare office promotes data-driven decision-making.

Dawn Meyerriecks, deputy director for science and technology at the CIA, discusses where her agency is looking for innovative solutions to the latest national security challenges.

Michael Daniel, president of the Cyber Threat Alliance and former White House cybersecurity coordinator, discusses the state of cyber collaboration between the public and private sectors.

Deborah Lee James, the 23rd secretary of the U.S. Air Force, discusses an effort to solve one of the service’s biggest personnel problems — a shortage of pilots.

Paul Ohodnicki, a materials scientist at the National Energy Technology Lab (NETL), discusses his work on advanced sensors designed to monitor U.S. energy levels.

Beth McGrath, managing director at Deloitte, discusses how the adoption of new technologies could impact the security clearance process at the National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB).

Terry Gerton, president and CEO of the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA), discusses coming financial deadlines that could impact the way federal managers do their jobs.

Dave Wise, director of physical infrastructure issues at the Government Accountability Office, discusses the privacy implications of connected cars for federal agencies.

John Pilotte and Heather Grimsley with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in Baltimore discuss their work on Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). They’re finalists for a Service to America Medal.

Archana Vemulapalli, chief technology officer for the District of Columbia, discusses the impact of a federal IT leadership vacuum on state and local governments.

Harrison Smith, deputy chief procurement officer at the IRS, discusses his agency's new approach to industry outreach.

Politico budget and appropriations reporter Sarah Ferris, Military Times' Capitol Hill bureau chief Leo Shane III, and Bloomberg Government legislative analyst joined Francis for this edition of the Federal Beat. They discuss the buzz of budget talk as Congress returns to Washington.

Gen. Herbert "Hawk" Carlisle (USAF, Ret.), President & CEO of the National Defense Industrial Association, discusses Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson’s announcement that the Air Force is boosting retention pay for its pilots, and what it means for the services’ pilot shortage.

Roger Zakheim, Counsel at Covington & Burling, discuss the impact of the fall legislative calendar on the Pentagon.

In this week’s Pentagon Beat roundtable Scott Maucione, defense reporter at Federal News Radio and Brendan McGarry, managing editor at Military.com, discuss the cost and future of President Trump’s proposed transgender military ban, the worldwide response to North Korean aggression and how military and civilian agencies are mobilizing to provide flood relief in Houston.