Feeding the Virtual Event Habit

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Necessity is the mother of invention, and that is in fact the case with virtual events. The ability to host virtual events has been available for quite some time, but the demand has not been there. With the sudden shutdown of the country due to COVID-19, event planners looked to postpone events but, as the crisis continued, they quickly embraced the online medium to keep some kind of connection to the public they needed to reach.

Virtual events are proving to be more than a stopgap as we work through the response to a public health crisis. It is generally accepted that habits form after 21 days and lifestyle changes cement themselves after 90. Being far beyond 90 days into online meetings and gatherings, we all now accept and even enjoy attending events and learning online. For event planners, virtual events have proven to be an amplifier of their content, often attracting more people than would have attended in person and providing a recorded version of sessions that can be used in other ways throughout the year.

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GovWhitePapers to Provide One Stop for Government Thought Leadership

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GovWhitePapers has launched as a central hub for government employees and supporting industry to find the information they need to understand the government market's trends and offer solutions to its challenges. A sister-site to GovEvents.com, GovWhitePapers will serve the 100,000+ audience who have been using the centralized source for all government-related events.

"Eleven years ago we launched GovEvents as a gathering place for the government community to find events that would help them advance their careers as well as their agency missions," said Kerry Rea, president of GovEvents and GovWhitePapers. "With GovWhitePapers, we're giving this community more of what they want--content and current knowledge on the latest trends and technologies making government more efficient and effective."

The GovWhitePapers team has collected materials relevant to the government audience on topics as diverse as Artificial Intelligence, Citizen Experience, Cloud Computing, Acquisition, Cybersecurity, Healthcare, and more. GovWhitePapers' goal is to make finding educational and thought leadership content less tedious, allowing the government community to: Continue reading →

Do Your Part. Be CyberSmart: 2020 Cybersecurity Awareness Month

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For the past 17 years, the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Cybersecurity Alliance have led a month-long national focus on cybersecurity best practices. In coordination with a number of organizations around the country, each October features events and campaigns to help educate businesses and individuals on avoiding dangers lurking online. As with everything else, the activities for the 2020 Cybersecurity Awareness Month will look a bit different. But perhaps it is fitting that most of it will be taking place online. It's a great opportunity to practice what you preach when hosting virtual events and resources.

The theme for 2020 is "Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart," encouraging individuals and organizations to look at their own role in protecting cyberspace and providing proactive steps to enhance cybersecurity. A big part of this is the idea of "if you connect it, protect it." Resources and speakers will focus on securing devices at home and at work, securing Internet-connected healthcare devices, and looking ahead to the future of connected devices.

In government, doing "your part" means making a transition to a zero trust security environment where access controls are maintained around data and systems even after someone has shown the proper credentials to get into the network. The name "zero trust" implies a difficult hurdle that has to be overcome to earn the trust, but that is not the case. A different way of looking at it is "context-based trust" or "variable trust" meaning that devices with network access will receive immediate entry. Other devices that are unknown to the network will be subject to additional checks and balances. Key to this is establishing what is perceived as normal behavior on the network and by users. As activity deviates from that norm, systems and data can be locked up until legitimate access is verified. Continue reading →

Event Selection Criteria for Exhibitors/Sponsors

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In a relationship-driven market, where you spend your time and money is critical. Add the pandemic to that for a radical new twist. Events of all kinds have always been a cornerstone of the GovCon market: briefings, seminars, conferences. You name it; we have them.

Over the years I have had numerous discussions with both event producers and those sponsoring or exhibiting events. I have produced many of my own as well.

When I get a call or email from someone asking me if they should participate in (pick an event), my first question is always, "What do you want to accomplish?"

Then we dive into details.

First, what is the pedigree of the event producer? There are several excellent organizations producing GovCon events: event companies, trade media, associations and even contractors who produce their own, like Amazon and Carahsoft. There are also the "occasional visitors" to our market who are not what I think of as properly pedigreed, as well as those with no background in events. Opt for those who are pedigreed - those who are here day in and day out. Continue reading →

Making the Grade: All Agencies Receive a Passing Score on FITARA Scorecard

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For the first time ever, every government agency received a passing score on the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) Scorecard. Now, this does not mean that everyone made the honor roll, rather the general GPA is around a C.

FITARA was enacted in 2014, and report cards come out twice a year to measure and track progress in meeting the modernization efforts outlined in the legislation. The scorecard has evolved over the years as deadlines have passed, and new modernization metrics have been implemented.

The coronavirus pandemic underscored the need for modernization. Agencies had to hustle to move processes fully online and make them accessible to a remote workforce and the public who could no longer visit government offices to conduct business. It reinforced the need for modernization to move from a wish list or "we'll get there" item to a critical need.

In this 10th report, The General Services Administration (GSA) received an A+ grade on the scorecard for the second time in a row. The Education Department dropped out of the A-range, falling to a B. They joined two other agencies in dropping scores, while seven agencies showed improved results, and 14 stayed the same. The majority of agencies passed in the C-range. Continue reading →