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Malcolm Jackson, CIO at EPA talks Tech Trends

Today, technology is a critical component to transform and modernize government to truly create a 21st century government. For our year-end report, the GovLoop team set out to explore what technology trends shaped 2012 to help agencies meet organizational goals. The report also includes best practices, case studies, and identifies which trends will shape government technology in 2013. This post will highlight one of those core trends, mobility.

Story Highlights

  • GovLoop Releases New Report on government technology in 2012
  • Report includes interviews with government thought leaders, insights from 250 GovLoop members, case studies and best practices
  • This story reviews cloud computing as a core trend for government in 2012

The report below includes a survey from 250 members of the GovLoop community, and interviews with Bernie Mazer, Chief Information Officer, Department of the Interior, Jim Ropelewski, Chief Procurement Officer, Department of Education, Linda Cureton, Chief Information Officer, NASA and Malcolm Jackson, Chief Information Officer, Environmental Protection Agency. Be sure to check out the entire report below and related resources on the guide landing page.

Expert Insights: Malcolm Jackson, CIO at the EPA

Technologist Profile: Mr. Jackson is responsible for IT operations and security, information quality and collection, and access to environmental information including the Toxics Release Inventory. His leadership focus includes IT strategic planning and governance, IT investment management and government transparency.

Chris Dorobek sat down for an extended 20 minute interview with Mr. Jackson where they discussed the role of mobility and security.

View the Guide Above Or Click Download Now.



Rise of Mobility

“At EPA we are looking at ways to make it easier for people to do their work. In the past people were chained to their desks. They would leave to go to a meeting. You would collaborate in a conference room. I see the federal government going towards a mobile workforce. Mobile in that they can take their devices with them. They can walk down the hall and have conversations with people and have instantaneous meetings. Virtual meetings are possible with capabilities today and since people have devices on them that allows them to access the necessary information,” said Jackson.

BYOD

“The question becomes how do you deliver capabilities to an end user. CIOs should be focusing on safe and secure delivery of information that in a manner that doesn’t necessarily factor in the various operating systems. They should ask how we provide a secure tunnel into our systems through the end points of mobile devices that our users have available to them and deliver the capabilities they need in a fashion that they can meet the mission at the agency they work for.

Budget Cuts

“Cuts are always a challenge. But this whole do more with less mantra should be government’s go to mantra no matter what. We do however, have to carve out funds for innovation, because that’s what drives technology forward,” said Jackson.

Procurement

“The whole acquisition model could be streamlined. Leaders have to find a way to balance the needs of an agency and take into account the acquisition model we have and refine things as we go through the process.

Apps for the Environment

Apps for the Environment was a contest for software developers to find new ways to combine and deliver environmental data in new apps.

“We learned a lot from that experiment. We realized that there is a tremendous opportunity to leverage public-private partnerships. In the future we will look to leverage the public sector from a tech perspective. There is a lot we can learn,” said Jackson.

The GovLoop Guide: Government Technology Year in Review

Agile Government Cloud Technology Turning Data into Power Expansion of Mobility Social Government

This page is brought to you by the GovLoop Technology Solutions Council. The mission of this council is to provide you with information and resources to help improve government. Visit the GovLoop Technology Solutions Council to learn more.

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