Weekly Round-up: September 26, 2014

John Kamensky Much, Much Better Buying Power. According to Jared Surbu, Federal News Radio, “The Defense Department unveiled the latest version of its Better Buying Power initiative Friday [September 19], shifting the acquisition improvement spotlight this time onto the need to drive more advanced technologies into the products DoD buys.” DHS Secretary Makes Risk Management a Priority. According to Andy Medici, Federal Times, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson announced at a recent conference:““In general, we are moving in the department to a risk-based strategy to Homeland Security, to border security, to aviation security.” This explicitly shifts from a “one-size-fits-all” approach to one that varies, based on perceived risk. Collaboration Tools Rule. Science-based projects are increasingly using electronic collaboration tools to get things done that allow scientific work to be independent of both time and space. According to John Moore, Federal Computer Week, “Science-centered institutions, for instance, conduct nearly all their inquiries on a collaborative basis and seek tools to keep investigators on the same page.” When Humans Lose Control. A provocative article in The Atlantic by Philip K. Howard examines recent government mis-management scandals and observes: “The reflexive reaction is to demand detailed laws and rules to make sure things don’t go wrong again. But shackling public choices with ironclad rules, ironically, is a main cause of the problems. Dictating correctness in advance supplants the one factor that is indispensable to all successful endeavors—human responsibility.” Michael J. Keegan Despite new EHR system, DoD faces big data interoperability challenges. Even after the electronic health record system is deployed, the Pentagon will be living with legacy data and paper records for years to come. New, standardized VA forms aim to speed up disability claims process. The Department of Veterans Affairs is set to introduce new forms that aim to clearly identify the disability claims and appeals of veterans and their survivors, officials announced Wednesday. The goal of the new forms is to standardize the process through which claims are filed, and make it easier for veterans and survivors to state what they are seeking from VA, according to a news release. VA's updated forms are expected to take out some of the guesswork on the part of applicants, which is often the cause of delays. FDA reorg splits CIO, informatics roles in preparation for network innovations. The Food and Drug Administration will hire a new chief information officer in the next few months. Unlike previous CIOs, this person will not wear two hats as the chief informatics officer. Walter Harris, the chief operating officer and acting chief information officer at the Food and Drug Administration, said the splitting of these two roles just made business sense for the bureau. Treasury's fixes to spending portal begin with mapping. Christina Ho, the executive director for data transparency in the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, said Treasury developed short- and long-term plans to improve USASpending.gov. Dan Chenok White House looks forward to next steps for open government: http://fcw.com/articles/2014/09/25/open-gov-initiatives.aspx via @fcwnow Getting ready for Cyber Security Awareness month, thoughts on disrupters: http://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/cybersecurity-report/2014/09/do-we-need-disrupt-cybersecurity-status-quo/95150/ via @govexec Treasury leader of transparency, Christina Ho, talks DATA Act, USA Spending reforms as part of long term vision:http://www.federalnewsradio.com/244/3709944/Treasurys-fixes-to-spending-portal-begin-with-mapping via @fednewsradio The Business of Government Radio Show: Conversation with Victor Gavin, PEO EIS, US Navy. What are the strategic priorities for the Navy’s Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems? How is the Navy balancing cost with systems capability? What is the Navy’s PEO for EIS doing to realize greater operational effectiveness? Join host Michael Keegan as he explores these questions and so much more with Victor Gavin, Program Executive Officer for Enterprise Information Systems within the U.S. Department of the Navy. Broadcast Schedule: The show airs Monday at 11 a.m., and Wednesday at noon, on Federal News Radio 1500AM WFED If you can't wait, though, you can listen to (or download) this week's program and all our previous interviews at businessofgovernment.org and by searching our audio archives.