Federal Drive with Tom Temin
5,561 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 months ago - ★★★★ - 30 ratingsWhen he's not tooling around the National Capital region on his motorcycle, Tom Temin interviews federal executives and government contractors who provide analysis and insight on the many critical issues facing the Executive branch. The Federal Drive is found at FederalNewsNetwork.com and 1500 AM in the Washington D.C. region.
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Episodes
When you leave service in national security, you just can't go work anywhere.
January 10, 2024 13:32 - 10 minutesNational security eyebrows shot up last month when a former FBI counterintelligence special agent received a four-year prison sentence. Why? He had gone to work for a Russian oligarch, a sanctioned oligarch no less. Robert McGonigal had headed the New York field office counterintelligence work. For some of the lessons everyone with clearance should learn from this, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked with attorney Dan Meyer, managing partner at Tully Rinckey. Learn more about your ad choices....
Ever wonder why its the deputies in government who do the actual work
January 10, 2024 13:29 - 11 minutesIn a long federal career, Elizabeth Cappello has typified people who get things done. A former Marine, she worked at the old U.S. Customs Service, later at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Now, she's the deputy chief information officer for the Homeland Security Department. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked to her about her storied career, that just had an exclamation point attached to the end of it with a Presidential Rank Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f...
Congress gets options on how to improve oversight of something nearly every agency does
January 10, 2024 13:20 - 11 minutesRulemaking. The government does lots and lots of it. But because the power to regulate is the power to destroy, rulemaking has rules. And like all agency activities, it requires congressional oversight. The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress asked the Government Accountability Office for ideas on how to improve rulemaking oversight. To find out what the committee came up with, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with Yvonne Jones, GAO's director of strategic issues. GAO Report L...
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 10, 2024
January 10, 2024 13:08 - 47 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: Congress gets options on how to improve oversight of something nearly every agency does. Ever wonder why its the deputies in government who do the actual work. When you leave service in national security, you just can't go work anywhere. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
USPS workforce diversity grows, but doesn’t always reflect in leadership ranks
January 10, 2024 13:06 - 6 minutesThe Postal Service has one of the most diverse workforces in the U.S. and is growing more diverse. But a recent watchdog report finds USPS workforce diversity doesn’t always reflect in its leadership ranks. The Government Accountability Office, in a report released last month, found white USPS employees held a disproportionate number of executive positions in fiscal 2022, and that employees of color, in some cases, were less likely to receive promotions into leadership roles. The report also ...
Capitol Hill's so-called budget is only the start of a lot of hard work
January 09, 2024 12:30 - 9 minutesThe top-line budget agreement Congress worked out last weekend doesn't mean the work is done. Members still have to work out the agency-by-agency allocations and whatever policy riders each side can stomach. For the industry view, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with the President and CEO of the Professional Services Council, David Berteau. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Distinguished cybersecurity career leads to a Presidential Rank Award
January 09, 2024 12:28 - 11 minutesThis fed has a long career as an engineer and cyber security practitioner for the Navy and Marine Corps. He reached the Senior Executive Service years ago. Now he's on the civilian side of government, as the chief information security officer for the Homeland Security Department. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked with this latest recipient of a Presidential Rank Award, Ken Bible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What a cybersecurity company thinks of the new DoD cybersecurity rule
January 09, 2024 12:24 - 10 minutesIndustry and government alike have been pondering the new proposed rule on vendor cybersecurity that was published just a couple of weeks ago. The Defense Department wants to finally get its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program off the ground. It would impose new requirements on contractors. For one industry view, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with the Chief Technology Officer at Fortinet Federal, Felipe Fernandez. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 9, 2024
January 09, 2024 12:13 - 48 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: What a cybersecurity company thinks of the new DoD cybersecurity rule. Presidential Rank Award series: A distinguished cybersecurity career leads to a top federal award. The so-called budget is only the start of a lot of hard work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
From AI to zero trust, how 2023 will be remembered by federal IT experts
January 09, 2024 12:00 - 9 minutesWhen federal IT historians look back on 2023, they will underline the beginning of the federal revolution with artificial intelligence and the next step in the continued evolution of IT modernization. Now if you said to yourself, “wait, there are federal IT historians?” Maybe I’m projecting my retirement job a little. But either way, when we all look back at the year that was 2023, we all can point to several federal IT and acquisition markers of progress. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
For General Schedule employees, pay compression got a little worse in 2024
January 09, 2024 11:59 - 9 minutesWe’re in a new year, and that means federal employees working across the country are about to get a sizeable raise added to their next paychecks. President Joe Biden made the average 5.2% raise official right before Christmas. But while most career feds on the General Schedule will get a raise somewhere around that percentage, thousands of those in the uppermost ranks of the GS pay system will see their paychecks short-changed. That’s because of an arbitrary pay cap that exists for General Sc...
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 8, 2024
January 08, 2024 13:23 - 1 hourOn this episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: The National Science Foundation organizes around artificial intelligence. This senior executive has the job of ensuring people don't go hungry. Once again with feeling, Congress goes for a budget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Once again with feeling, Congress goes for a budget
January 08, 2024 13:20 - 9 minutesBorder. Budget. Border. Budget. If Congress sounds like a broken record, well it is. With two weeks to go before government funding lapses for many agencies, Congress did something to move the ball forward on Sunday. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin gets the latest from Bloomberg Government deputy news director Loren Duggan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This senior executive has the job of ensuring people don't go hungry
January 08, 2024 12:01 - 10 minutesThe Agriculture Department's Food and Nutrition Service helps millions of Americans of all ages every year. It operates several programs to help people of all ages with something kinda essential. The guest of Federal Drive Host Tom Temin knows the inner-workings of these numerous programs as well as anyone. Now Tameka Owens, the Food and Nutrition Service assistant administrator is a recipient of a Presidential Rank Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The National Science Foundation organizes around artificial intelligence
January 08, 2024 11:57 - 10 minutesAt the National Science Foundation (NSF), artificial intelligence has become a high priority agenda item. Recently, it appointed a new special assistant to the director to focus on AI. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with the new NSF AI Director, Tess deBlanc-Knowles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
IRS using ‘every tool available’ to ramp up agency recruitment, retention
January 08, 2024 11:54 - 21 minutesAfter the IRS reached a workforce of 90,000 federal employees at the end of fiscal 2023, agency human capital leaders are looking ahead to even more hiring over the next few years. To reach the IRS’ goal of hiring about 20,000 employees by the end of fiscal 2024, Traci DiMartini, the IRS’ human capital officer, said she intends to use “every tool that is available to us.” “We have this tremendous opportunity to replenish our workforce with amazing talent,” DiMartini said in an interview with ...
Cyber risks to defense industrial supply chains are ‘substantially worse’ than other concerns
January 08, 2024 11:53 - 10 minutesThere is an outright conflict between cybersecurity and supply chain risk management (SCRM), and simply adding those together can lead to an increase in cyberattacks, a new report finds. Researchers found that cybersecurity and supply chain risk management are in many instances at odds with each other. There are trade-offs, and understanding what those trade-offs look like will allow the Defense Department to better secure its defense industrial products supply, according to the authors of th...
This Presidential Rank Awardee might have one of the toughest HR jobs anywhere
January 05, 2024 13:29 - 9 minutesHow would you like the job of keeping tabs on labor relations in an organization with two million employees? Or of employee accountability? Federal Drive Tom Temin's guest isn't personally responsible for these things, but he's the main adviser at the Office of Personnel Management on them. Tim Curry is also a recent recipient of a Presidential Rank Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 5, 2024
January 05, 2024 13:13 - 47 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: A 2024 look ahead at the IRS, its people and its modernization. This Presidential Rank Awardee might have one of the toughest HR jobs anywhere. National security agencies with unique approaches to zero-trust cybersecurity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Three new story arcs of ‘As GSA’s Acquisition World Turns’
January 04, 2024 23:06 - 8 minutesLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Guess what? It's not too late to help out the Combined Federal Campaign.
January 04, 2024 14:49 - 9 minutesJust because the Christmas season is in the rear-view mirror, doesn't mean you can't still give. In fact, the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) continues until January 15. For a summary of the most recent campaign, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with the chair of the CFC for the National Capital Region, Vince Micone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
New year, new opportunities for contracting protests
January 04, 2024 14:45 - 12 minutesWhether Congress passes a 2024 budget or not, federal agencies will continue to engage in contracting. That will mean continued protests by disappointed bidders. You can learn a lot from protests that have already been settled. For a roundup of some of the most significant protests of 2023, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What is it really like on the planet Venus? Ask this NASA scientist.
January 04, 2024 14:43 - 14 minutesThis is one of the 10 interviews being broadcast this month, by Federal Drive Host Tom Temin, with recent recipients of the Presidential Rank Award. Dr. Lori Glaze is a career NASA researcher, who has focused on the nearby planets and their geologic behavior. She's currently Director of the Planetary Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 4, 2024
January 04, 2024 14:19 - 51 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: Guess what? It's not too late to help out the Combined Federal Campaign. New year, new opportunities for contracting protests. What is really like on the planet Venus? Ask this NASA scientist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 3, 2024
January 03, 2024 13:05 - 52 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: A tiny agency has big gains in employee satisfaction scores. Meet one of the government's most experienced rule-making and evaluation experts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Meet one of the government's most experienced rule-making and evaluation experts
January 03, 2024 13:02 - 14 minutesNo agency proposes a big rule until it gets the okay from an office little known to the public. Federal Drive host Tom Temin's guest is the permanent deputy administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Dominic Mancini, who also is a recent recipient of a 2024 Presidential Rank Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tiny agency has big gains in employee satisfaction scores
January 03, 2024 12:57 - 20 minutesThe Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board has a short but somewhat turbulent history. One chairman was forced out for mismanagement. Another resigned early because the White House proposed getting rid of the board altogether. More recently, things have stabilized. In the latest Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey scores, engagement at the Chemical Safety Board rose by 29%. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin got an update from the new chairman, Steve Owens. Learn more about your ad choices. V...
First win in Europe: DoD employees get union representation at German military installation
January 03, 2024 12:54 - 9 minutesAfter building quite a bit of momentum last year, the largest union for federal employees is celebrating its first big win in Europe. The American Federation of Government Employees has just welcomed almost 400 civilian employees working at the Kaiserslautern Military Community Center Exchange in Germany, a move that labor organizers hope will spur union growth among federal workers stationed in Europe. The 389 non-appropriated fund (NAF) employees all work for the Army and Air Force Exchange...
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- January 2, 2024
January 02, 2024 13:17 - 53 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: From a recent practitioner: More of what's ahead for federal acquisition in 2024. Will 2024 bring some resolutions for the cyber workforce problem? The upcoming congressional session is shaping up like the one just ended. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The upcoming congressional session is shaping up like the one just ended
January 02, 2024 13:11 - 8 minutesHappy New Year. The government-shutdown deadline is just a couple of weeks away. Some things never change. For a deeper look at what a second session of a troubled Congress is likely to do, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with WTOP Capitol Hill Correspondent Mitchell Miller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
From a recent practitioner: More of what's ahead for federal acquisition in 2024
January 02, 2024 13:07 - 18 minutesAcquisition is an eternal function to keep the government running. It is also constantly changing. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin's guest knows the ins and outs, having just left the General Services Administration as commissioner of its Federal Acquisition Service. For what buyers and sellers can expect in the year ahead, we hear from Sonny Hashmi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Will 2024 bring some resolutions for the cyber workforce problem?
January 02, 2024 12:55 - 9 minutesFrom a sheer numbers perspective, the cybersecurity workforce appears to be in a perpetual crisis. For years, the number of qualified cybersecurity personnel has lagged far behind what’s needed to fill positions across all sectors, and the gap is only growing. And for federal agencies struggling to compete with private sector pay, the shortfall is especially acute. But over the past six months, the White House, agencies and other organizations have said they’ll take concrete steps to address ...
Heading into 2024, OPM ‘fundamentally rethinking’ federal hiring
January 02, 2024 12:53 - 9 minutesThe Office of Personnel Management had a busy year, managing to push out plenty of proposed regulations during 2023 that aim to reform federal hiring and improve workforce challenges. Even more plans and changes appear to lie ahead, though many may come in smaller bites, and require leadership from chief human capital officers (CHCOs) and other workforce experts in government. “We are fundamentally rethinking hiring in government,” OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said during a Dec. 12 CHCO Council m...
OFPP’s acquisition workforce modernization effort to kick into gear in 2024
January 02, 2024 12:51 - 9 minutesThe Office of Federal Procurement Policy turns 50 years old in 2024. While the federal acquisition community has come a long way since 1974, the next few years, let alone the next 50 years, will be all about the acquisition workforce. Christine Harada, the senior advisor in OFPP, said the Biden administration’s acquisition workforce priorities for 2024 and beyond start with ensuring agencies have the appropriate people who are trained and supported, and who have the necessary skillsets for to...
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- December 29, 2023
December 29, 2023 13:06 - 50 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: This senior executive is all about effective acquisition with finesse. Telework changes, hiring reforms of 2023 charting a course into the new year. The IRS workforce development plan lacks one crucial element. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
IRS workforce development plan lacks one crucial element
December 29, 2023 13:03 - 10 minutesThe IRS has taken several big steps recently on the personnel front. It has brought in people to help improve taxpayer service. And just the other day commissioner, Danny Werfel said he would reorganize management to emphasize service, compliance, technology and operations. But to discuss one missing element, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked with long-time leadership professor Bob Tobias. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This senior executive is all about effective acquisition with finesse
December 29, 2023 12:59 - 12 minutesLike every agency, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) relies on its acquisition workforce to keep it supplied. In the ongoing crisis at the U.S. southern border, CBP appears to have a secret weapon in the person of its assistant commissioner for the office of acquisition. This long-serving official has received a Presidential Rank Award. Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked with Diane Sahakian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Telework changes, hiring reforms of 2023 charting a course into the new year
December 29, 2023 12:57 - 9 minutesFor the federal workforce, 2023 was yet another pivotal year — defined by changes not only to the federal workplace, but also to the government’s recruitment and retention strategies. What this year perhaps most notably marked was a pivot in agencies’ telework policies and return-to-office plans. After the Office of Management and Budget’s call to ramp up “meaningful” in-office work, agencies led a slow, one-by-one release of their individual plans to heed the White House memo. Depending on t...
A new national cyber strategy, and ever-evolving threats, headline another busy year in cyber
December 29, 2023 12:54 - 10 minutesFederal agencies coalesced around a new national vision for cybersecurity over the past year, but continued to grapple with emerging cyber threats. I asked experts in the cyber field, many of them former feds, the following question: What was the biggest development for federal cybersecurity in 2023? The most popular answer far and away was the Biden administration’s release of a new national cyber strategy. But regulatory activities, the emergence of artificial intelligence, and some game-ch...
DoD special trial counsel offices become fully operational, giving more protections to sexual assault victims
December 29, 2023 12:51 - 8 minutesSpecial victims units are now solely responsible for investigating sexual assault and some other serious crimes, marking a turning point for the military justice system and the way sexual misconduct is handled in the military. Within each military service, Offices of Special Trial Counsel will allow trained lawyers to evaluate and prosecute allegations of sexual assault and other “covered” offenses independently, taking those cases out of the hands of victims’ commanders. Secretary of Defense...
To build network that works with allies, INDOPACOM starts from scratch with zero trust
December 28, 2023 13:41 - 7 minutesAdopting a zero trust approach to cybersecurity inside a single federal agency is hard enough. For U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, it’s many times more complex. That’s because INDOPACOM needs to adopt zero trust in a way that works not just for the U-S military, but for numerous other allies and partner nations – some of which are further behind the curve than others. Long before it started the work of bringing “mission partners” into a zero trust environment, INDOPACOM’s first task was to figure ...
What contractors should do now about DoD's new cyber security rule
December 28, 2023 13:34 - 10 minutesDefense contractors are parsing out a nearly 250-page proposed rule. It landed sort like a lump of coal on Christmas Eve. It is all about a program known as Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). At the very least, if you are even tangentially involved in the topic, you should read the proposal and prepare comments. For more, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin talked with procurement attorney Eric Crusius, a partner at Holland and Knight. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...
What the just-out Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey results tell us.
December 28, 2023 13:29 - 12 minutesThe Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey scores came out just before Christmas. And the results, in general, seem to be pointed in the right direction. For early analysis, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with a partner and the Director of Government and Public Affairs at Shaw, Bransford and Roth, Jason Briefel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Happy New Year! Now take this 25% pay cut
December 28, 2023 13:24 - 9 minutesA special retention pay authority the Justice department used to retain certain Bureau of Prisons employees expires in a few days. This affects employees of the Federal Correctional Institution Thomson in Illinois. The result: A Christmastime pay cut of 25% for correctional officers and other employees. For more of what is going on, we turn to the president of the American Federation of Government Employees local 4070, Jon Zumkehr. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- December 28, 2023
December 28, 2023 13:14 - 48 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: Happy New Year! Now take this 25% pay cut. What the just-out Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey results tell us. What contractors should do now about DoD's new cyber security rule. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Comments are closed. Will the FedRAMP program actually get updated?
December 27, 2023 15:28 - 12 minutesAn update to the long-running cloud-computing security program known as FedRAMP, has entered a new phase. Comments closed Friday, and now the authorities at the General Services Administration and Office of Management and Budget are percolating. For what the industry is hoping for, we turn to Stephanie Kostro, the Executive Vice President for Policy at the Professional Services Council. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On the human capital front, quantum computing is easier said than done
December 27, 2023 15:21 - 10 minutesThe Defense Department ranks high among federal agencies seeking expertise in quantum computing, the next big thing in computing. DoD agencies have established several ways to recruit and hire people with chops in quantum sub-skills. But the Government Accountability Office (GAO) finds, they're not all following the best practices for getting the people they need. More now from Candice Wright, the GAO's Director of Science, Technology Assessment and Analytics . GAO REPORT Learn more about you...
A year-end, good news story on agency financial management
December 27, 2023 15:17 - 11 minutesThe Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) received some good news as the year closed. It achieved a clean financial audit opinion, with no material weaknesses. It even won praise from its inspector general. For how this happened, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with Chief Financial Officer Vinay Singh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Federal Drive with Tom Temin -- December 27, 2023
December 27, 2023 15:12 - 45 minutesOn today's episode of the Federal Drive with Tom Temin: A year-end, good news story on agency financial management. On the human capital front, quantum computing is easier said than done. Comments are closed. Will the FedRAMP program actually get updated? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
DoD outlines four-phase approach to implement CMMC in proposed rule
December 27, 2023 15:10 - 6 minutesThe Defense Department’s long-awaited proposed rule for the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program lays out DoD’s plan to introduce the CMMC requirements over the next three years. The proposed rule, released today and scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Dec. 26, would establish requirements “for a comprehensive and scalable assessment mechanism” to ensure defense contractors are implementing required security protections. DoD already has a provision in its contra...