Views from the Corner Office

Tom Romeo, the general manager for the U.S. federal services segment for Maximus, said agencies have stiffened up the rules to get through the security clearance process and the backlog remains a big problem for vendors.

Jimmie Adkins, the vice president of federal for Ruckus Networks, said 5G and CBRS will change the way agencies use connected devices and enable a faster, more secure network.

Toni Townes-Whitley, the president, U.S. Regulated Industries at Microsoft, sat down with Federal News Network Executive Editor Jason Miller at Microsoft’s offices in Washington, D.C. She said the industry as a whole, as well as technology itself, have made a shift from just software development, to building platforms and capabilities that are robust. Whitley also discussed edge computing and the rationale for using other transaction authority.

Andrew Churchill, the vice president of federal for Qlik, sat down with Executive Editor Jason Miller at Federal News Network’s studios in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Sudhakar Ramakrishna, the CEO of Pulse Secure, said customers want better tool integration and more control over their devices and access to data so security must adapt to their needs.

Bryan Thomas, the senior vice president for public sector at World Wide Technology, said private sector use cases is helping agencies become more comfortable with leading edge technology

Walter Barnes, president of PM Consulting Group says to be successful in the federal market, small firms must think more about solving specific problems.

Dave Turner, president, CEO and chairman of the board of Hitachi Vantara Federal, said vendors too often are asking questions instead of doing research to find out where agencies have challenges.

Federal News Network’s Tom Temin, anchor of the daily Federal Drive with Tom Temin, interviewed John Goodman, chief executive of Accenture Federal, about challenges to an electronic marketplace for federal buying, handling complex government projects, and artificial intelligence.

Lynn Dugle, the CEO, chairman and president of Engility, said the security clearance backlog is limiting their ability to bid on contracts and creating a challenge for all of industry