Data comes from many sources, data definitions, variations in data, different systems, and from many users. It is important to gather and identify data from a multitude of sources to explore data patterns and data trends to be used for forecasting, planning, future strategies, innovation, research, and others that are not affected by fluctuations, repeated sequencing over fixed periods of time, unexplained random variances, and much more. Ever...

The work world has turned upside down and back again in the last two years, as the federal and commercial workforce adapted to the shifting pandemic environment. Remote work, cybersecurity, modernizing IT environments from cloud to Zero Trust, and changing job requirements, have all had significant effects on the federal workplace. Agencies face a list of priorities from fostering agile workplace environments, enhancing customer experiences, d...

Modernization is integral in the development of the Federal workforce as organizations fight to keep up with the private sector. Organizations and agencies need to begin to adopt more cutting edge technologies, such as automation of workflow processes, in order to be more forward-thinking and competitive. In order to fully reach a new potential within our Federal workforce, agencies need to center the implementation process as their goal. This...

The work world has turned upside down and back again in the last two years, as the federal and commercial workforce adapted to the shifting pandemic environment. Remote work, cybersecurity, modernizing IT environments from cloud to Zero Trust, and changing job requirements, have all had significant effects on the federal workplace. Agencies face a list of priorities from fostering agile workplace environments, enhancing customer experiences,...

Two years of pandemic living made clear the depth and breadth of the digital divide – states lacking robust internet and wireless infrastructure discovered the gaps that made it far more difficult to provide essential services in a work-from-home world. Today, states and localities are considering investment in such diverse areas as IoT, emergency preparedness, school security, and strengthening their logistics and supply chain managemen...

A Practical Approach to Internal Controls The Green Book sets the standards for an effective internal control system for federal agencies and is a crucial safeguard over public resources. State, local, and quasi-governmental entities, as well as not-for-profit organizations, may adopt the new Green Book standards as a framework for an internal control system. This four hour CPE seminar provides an overview of the principles-based Green Book an...

Procurement misuse, abuse, and inefficiency continues to be a challenge for state governments, driven by large transaction volumes and pressure to reduce costs. Purchase cards, an increasingly common pronouncement method, provide financial incentives such as rebates and reduce manual processes for staff; however, increased usage has led to new challenges around compliance, misuse, and fraud risk. In fact, 93% of government officials believed f...

Combating modern-day software supply chain attacks is significantly more complicated than in the past. Adversaries are getting craftier and are no longer waiting to exploit publicly disclosed vulnerabilities to launch a cyberattack. By shifting their focus “upstream,” adversaries can infect a single open source component, which will then be distributed “downstream” using legitimate software workflows and update mechanis...

GSA Personal Property Management is hosting a series of virtual training sessions on various aspects of the program. The topic of this FREE virtual training will be Basics of Property Disposal directly from Federal Management Regulation (FMR) 102.36. This training will provide you with information regarding key items that you will go through during the disposal of your agency personal property. What can you do if your property has low value; w...

Government wide pressure to reduce IT costs and optimize operations has led many agencies to embrace cloud computing. Despite the potential savings and improved efficiencies, securing the cloud remains a major concern. Cloud Computing Security can be defined as defending the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of agency assets (data, applications, infrastructure) using cloud services from both outside and insider threats. Securing the...