Author Archive

Natalie Alms

Staff Reporter, Nextgov/FCW

Natalie Alms
Natalie Alms is a staff reporter at Nextgov/FCW covering federal technology policy, service delivery, customer experience and the government's tech workforce. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University and has written for the Salisbury (N.C.) Post. Connect with Natalie on Twitter at @AlmsNatalie.
Defense Systems

Pentagon unveils new biodefense-focused supercomputer 

The new system is part of a collaboration with the Department of Energy-sponsored Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Policy

Trump pledges to ax Biden’s AI-safety order

The newly adopted Republican platform says the executive order "hinders AI Innovation."

Policy

Top Pentagon IT official departs deputy CIO role

Lily Zeleke will be taking over “new responsibilities” at the agency, though it’s still unknown what her new position is.

Policy

Omnibus Spending Bill Would Ban TikTok on Government Devices

Congress may need to do more to ward off the national-security threat of the Chinese-made video app, one senator says.

Policy

Almost No One Has Been Hired Through DHS' Much-Hyped Cyber Talent Program

With a month left in the fiscal year, program is 146 new hires short of its 150-person goal.

Defense Systems

NDAA requires DOD to report on prospects for a ‘cyber academy’

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) says these reports could inform potential legislation to establish an academy to educate cyber workers for government modeled after military service academies.

Defense Systems

What’s next for security clearance reform?

Expect new milestones from the DOD’s governmentwide vetting IT and new policies on vetting criteria in 2022.

Defense Systems

Final 2022 defense bill calls for new data and software job series

The House-passed compromise NDAA also has other workforce provisions, including a change to the probationary period for civilian feds at DOD and paid parental bereavement leave for federal employees.

Defense Systems

White House asks agencies to delay consequences for vaccine mandate violations

Agencies have the power to decide how to discipline unvaccinated feds, but the White House is encouraging them to go beyond education, counseling and letters of reprimand until after the holidays.

Defense Systems

Homeland Security updates cyber workforce system

The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity Talent Management System updates the agency’s practices around hiring, compensating and developing employees.

Defense Systems

Intelligence community diversity lags at the highest levels

Although there have been some gains in the representation of women and minorities in the IC workforce overall, the highest ranks are less diverse.

Defense Systems

DHS faces steep climb with financial systems modernization

The agency made some awards on a long-delayed financial management modernization effort earlier this month, but years of work awaits the agency on establishing an enterprisewide system.

Defense Systems

AFGE looks to block Cyber Command reserve program in NDAA

A proposed amendment to the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act to pilot a cybersecurity reserve force at the Department of Defense would weaken merit systems principles, according to the largest federal employee union.

Defense Systems

Fostering a diverse cybersecurity workforce

Experts at an Aspen Institute event explained some roadblocks to cultivating a diverse cybersecurity workforce and offered potential solutions, including putting less reliance on formal certification.

Defense Systems

Was DOD ready for telework in 2020?

Slow networks, a lack of management buy-in and the need for more government equipment all affected how DOD feds transitioned to telework at the start of the pandemic, new reports from DOD's IG found.

Defense Systems

DHS workforce sprint brings in nearly 300 cyber employees

Cybersecurity vacancies totaled about 2,000 at the start of the hiring sprint in May.

Defense Systems

Executive order covers diversity, inclusion, equity and accessibility for federal workers

An executive order issued last Friday directs the federal government to ramp up diversity training, rethink the use salary history as a basis for pay determinations and supply gender non-conforming and non-binary and transgender feds with employee credentials that reflect their current names, pictures and pronouns.

Defense Systems

DOD watchdog says DDS director didn't mistreat employees

A probe found that Defense Digital Service Brett Goldstein did condone the use of unapproved encrypted communications apps and also identified discussion among staffers about programming a script to rig an online competition.

Defense Systems

Clearance reciprocity still a policy issue despite better tech

The backlog of security clearance investigations has continued to drop from a 2018 high of 725,000 to 200,000, but agencies continue to struggle with reciprocity issues.