The GovNavigators Show

This week, Robert and Adam dive into the inspiring honorees of the Service to America Medals, put on by the Partnership for Public Service, which celebrate extraordinary achievements of public servants (and also dish on the GovNavigators sponsored after party and the emergence of the GovNavigators flu!).

Our guests this week (LaJuanna Russell, CEO of Business Management Associates, and Nichole Atallah and Meghan Leemon with PilieroMazza) share the latest details of changes to SBA's 8(a) Small Business Development Program after some pivotal court rulings and talk about what it will mean for small business government contractors.

Robert and Adam get a visit from The GovNavigators Show overlord Jason Miller to deliver their annual performance review. They discuss the shutdown hangover (the "shutdown letdown"), the latest update to the long-running FITARA scorecard, and an upcoming reorganization at the Federal Acquisition Service at GSA.

There are a host of cyber activities and initiatives underway in the federal government right now, and what better way to mark Cybersecurity Awareness Month than by having Mitch Herckis, Branch Director for Federal Cybersecurity at the Office of Management and Budget on to detail them all for us. Mitch also has an encyclopedic memory of E.O. and M-memo numbers, which warms our hearts at GovNavigators.

Resources
E.O. 14028: Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity
M-22-09: Federal Zero Trust Strategy
M-23-22: Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience
M-22-01: Improving Detection of Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities and Incidents on Federal Government Systems through Endpoint Detection and Response
M-22-18: Enhancing the Security of the Software Supply Chain through Secure Software Development Practices

Defying the odds makers, Congress is able to pass a continuing resolution through November 17, buying additional time to try to complete appropriations bills. But how we'll not just end up back where we started remains unclear.

Jason Van Sice, Vice President for Advanced Recognition Systems at NEC Corporation of America joins the show to talk about the use of biometrics in the digital transformation of travel.

Digital Transformation of Travel

The GovNavigators are joined by CX royalty as Martha Dorris from Dorris Consulting International and Charlotte Lee from Granicus join to talk about the evolution of customer experience initiatives in government and their efforts to create the Customer Experience Leadership Instituteat the University of Virginia.

Former Federal executive and DHS CIO Richard Spires joins the GovNavigators Show to talk about his latest book, Government Can Deliver: A Practitioner's Guide to Improving Agency Effectiveness and Efficiency. Richard shares advice and stories from his decades of experience transforming major private sector and government technology operations and the impetus that lead him to write his second book since leaving government service.

Hosts Robert and Adam also cover the latest on budget negotiations, developments in regulating AI, and an upcoming week overflowing with events. Oh - and they also discuss the launch of their new one-stop shop website for government news: The Sludge Daily.

Show Notes
White House Secures New AI Pledges
Launch of The Sludge Daily

Upcoming Event Links
Route Fifty’s Future Cities Program
ACT-IAC's The Future Evolution of the Workforce
AGA’s Internal Controls & Fraud Event
GovExec's 2023 Leading Brands Breakfast

Robert and Adam are back after the Labor Day holiday and review the big items on the fall agenda in Washington. And Indiana's Chief Data Officer (and Executive Director of the Indiana Management Performance Hub) Josh Martin joins the GovNavigators Show to talk about Indiana's approach to data and how to get things done in government.

Show Notes
From shutdown prospects to anti-telework bills: 5 things to watch when Congress returns
*NEW* Sludge Daily

As summer draws to a close, the GovNavigators pause to celebrate organized labor - the people who brought you the weekend! And in honor of the long weekend, we bring back the most popular episode of the GovNavigators Show to date - Recoding America with Jen Pahlka.

So grab a cold beverage of your choice, sit back, relax, and enjoy the Labor Day holiday!

Show Notes
Dowager Countess of Grantham
Kings Dominion Law
History of Labor Day

Recoding America: Why Government is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better

Friend of the show Charles Cooper, Managing Partner and Founder of Brumidi Group is back by popular demand! Charles joins Robert and Adam to discuss the overflowing fall agenda for Congress as the August recess draws to a close. From appropriations and the potential for a government shutdown to the farm bill, NDAA, tax extenders, Chinese tariffs, and the Senate appointment process, they cover a lot of ground.

Robert and Adam also lean on the GovNavigators intern (and give a h/t to Wayne's World) to flashback to Charles's previous appearance to determine if his prediction turned out to be true.

Show Notes:
Eric Katz GovExec article: Slashing the federal workforce and eliminating agencies: Takeaways from the first Republican presidential debate

Trust in government in the United States has dropped drastically since the 1960s, hovering as low as 20% in some recent surveys. Srikant Sastry, leader of Cherry Bekaert's Advisory Services and Ed DeSeve, Coordinator of the Agile Government Center at NAPA (and Senior Advisor at GovNavigators) join the show to talk about their recent op-ed in GovExec titled, "Trust in the federal government is in a tailspin. Here's how agencies can rebuild it."

Show Links:
Commission on PPBE Reform Interim Report
Circular A-11
Agile Government Center Framework
Treasury Seeks Greater Data Sharing in Interagency Plan to Curb Improper Payments