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Defense
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A new performance award strategy could rise from the ashes of a now-defunct pay system at the Defense Department. DoD tried to replace the General Schedule system with a National Security Personnel System back in the mid-2000s, but the White House repealed it two years ago. Bob Tobias is Director of Key Executive Leadership Programs at American University. He was part of a Task Force that tried to improve the system back in 2009. He said one bright spot in the system could be the key to building a new performance culture across the federal government on In Depth with Francis Rose.
July 09, 2014 -
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The technical name for one of the Army's communications networks is Warfighter Information Network-Tactical Increment Two. But some soldiers prefer to call it their digital guardian angel. Another calls it the holy grail of communication. Now one of the creators of the Army's WIN-T system is receiving prestigious recognition for his role in its creation. Patrick DeGroodt is Deputy Project Manager for the Department of the Army. He's a Service to America medal finalist in the National Security and International Affairs category. He explained the creation process on In Depth with Francis Rose. Read a Q&A with DeGroodt.
July 09, 2014 -
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The Senate Intelligence Committee has approved the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act. The legislation is designed to expand information shared about cybersecurity threats and defensive mechanisms between the government and companies and within the private sector. The goal is to combat the rapid increase in attacks on computer systems that have resulted in the theft of millions of Americans' personal information and hundreds of millions of dollars in losses for businesses.
July 09, 2014 -
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A new bipartisan report from the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations called the Air Force's now-canceled Expeditionary Combat Support System "one of the most egregious examples of mismanagement by the DoD in recent memory." But the failure of ECSS may not be an aberration, the report suggested. Other enterprise-resource planning programs in the department are at risk of falling victim to the same fate.
July 09, 2014 -
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The restrictions on feds' travel opportunities are having too many unintended consequences, says Larry Allen, president of Allen Federal Business Partners.
July 09, 2014 -
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The first change of command at U.S. Cyber Command is complete. General Keith Alexander made way for Admiral Mike Rogers recently. But new revelations from Edward Snowden are a reminder that the first four years of the combination of CYBERCOM and the National Security Agency aren't without controversy. William Lynn was Deputy Secretary of Defense when the Defense Department stood up Cyber Command. He wrote about the strategy behind it in Foreign Policy at the time. He is now Chief Executive Officer of Finmeccanica North America and DRS Technologies. He explained on In Depth with Francis Rose the chain of events that caused DoD leadership to stand up Cyber Command.
July 08, 2014 -
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A specially-formed commission tasked with modernizing military compensation released an interim report in anticipation of its full recommendations due in February. The document reviews massive changes that have occurred since the military switched to an all-volunteer force in 1973.
July 08, 2014 -
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Former Deputy Defense Secretary Bill Lynn says the Pentagon needs to adjust its strategy to take advantage of the global and commercial technology markets.
July 08, 2014 -
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The Defense Department isn't following one of its own roadmaps. Back in 2012, defense planners devised a plan for protecting bases and installations from the potentially damaging effects of climate change. That's all started to affect DoD's planning, but there's a lot more to do. Brian Lepore is the director of Defense Capabilities and Management at the Government Accountability Office. He joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to discuss what the roadmaps mean.
July 08, 2014 -
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The Pentagon says the transfer of Syrian chemicals from the Danish container ship Ark Futura to the Motor Vessel Cape Ray is complete. Cape Ray departed the Italian port of Gioia Tauro on Monday for international waters in the Mediterranean Sea, where neutralization operations will soon begin. The neutralization process should take several weeks to complete. Secretary Hagel expressed his thanks to Danish and Italian authorities for their support in this process and said in a statement he "is enormously proud of everyone who helped make possible this safe and incident-free transfer."
July 08, 2014 -
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The Pentagon says it's time to trim down the size and the cost of its headquarters staff around the world. The Government Accountability Office says the size of the overall workforce at the Pentagon's combatant commands doubled over the past decade. Overall spending to support the command headquarters grew by almost $1 billion, too. John Pendleton is director of defense capabilities and management of the GAO. He explained DoD's reduction plan and recommended ways to shrink the workforce on In Depth with Francis Rose.
July 07, 2014 -
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Sean C. Young and Benjamin J. Tran, two electronics engineers with the Air Force Research Lab created an aerial sensor that has helped U.S. service members to find and destroy dangerous improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Afghanistan.
July 07, 2014 -
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President Obama spoke recently with Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud of Saudi Arabia to convey his best wishes as Ramadan begins. The two leaders discussed the current situation in Iraq, and the threat that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) poses to the stability of Iraq and to the entire region. They reaffirmed the need for Iraq's leaders to move expeditiously to form a new government capable of uniting all of Iraq's diverse communities. The President thanked the King for Saudi Arabia's pledge of $500 million to help alleviate the suffering of all Iraqis who have been displaced by the violence. The two leaders agreed to continue to consult closely on regional developments.
July 07, 2014 -
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The Service to America Medals honor federal employees who go above and beyond their job descriptions to serve the public. For the next few months, Federal News Radio will be speaking to the finalists. A civilian engineer is reshaping the way the military performs operations in the air and on the field. Sean Young is an electronics engineer with the Air Force Research Laboratory in Ohio. He helped save soldiers' lives in Afghanistan by creating a new aerial sensor system to detect improvised explosive devices. For his creativity, he is a finalist in the National Security and International Affairs category of the 2014 Sammies awards. He joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to talk about his nomination. View a gallery of all the Sammies nominees. Read a Q&A with Sean Young.
July 07, 2014
