Skill Set of the Dynamic Technology Workforce (S1E15)

When the COVID crisis hit federal agencies, leaders had to assess what tools they had on the shelf and what they planned on deploying for remote access. Today’s interview shows how four federal leaders managed to ramp up services for remote users.

Microsoft Teams was a great way to collaborate, yet it was underused at the National Science Foundation. Dorothy Aronson shares with the audience how she managed to bring normal face-to-face evaluation meetings into the virtual world by leveraging previous investments in Microsoft Teams.

One of the challenges that the Department of Education faced was making sure employees were developing skill sets. Jason Gray noted that the transition could not have taken place without the adaptability of his staff.

Before COVID, Government Printing Office’s Sam Musa used hard tokens for identification, just like everyone else. If team members were not allowed in the building, he had to transition to soft tokens. His staff was flexible enough to increase the number of VPNs as well as changing the token system.

NASA is more geographically spread out than either the NSF or the Government Printing Office. Emma Antunes has six locations and noticed that before COVID, some meetings may have had occasionally delay; today’s meetings start on the minute.

The Defense Information Systems Agency is one agency that needs to have staff current on all cyberthreats. COVID allowed Jason Martin to provide continuous learning that was easily accessible. His team managed to have fifteen learning development programs across the globe adjust seamlessly.

To view this webinar: Skillset of the Dynamic Technology Workforce.

Featured Speakers:

• Dorothy Aronson, Chief Information Officer & Chief Data Officer, National Science Foundation
• Jason Gray, Chief Information Officer, U.S. Department of Education
• Jason Martin, Vice Director, Development & Business Center, Defense Information System Agency
• Chris Aherne, Regional Vice President Federal Sales, Smartsheet
• Michael Kennedy, Moderator & Senior National Intelligence, Service Officer (ret.), FedInsider