Page 13 - FCW, March/April 2021

cloud technology (49%), data capture and analysis (44%), improving the customer experience (40%), digital transformation (36%) and managing a distributed workforce (36%).
The need for a modern approach to procurement Adopting the latest technology requires acquisition processes that are fast and flexible. Dave Wennergren, CEO of the American Council for Technology-Industry Advisory Council, cited five “levers”
that are driving changes in the role of FSIs: innovation, acquisition, workforce, financial management and customer relationships. In terms of acquisition,
he said agencies must take advantage of commercial best practices.
“We need to demand more,” he said
at an event sponsored by FCW’s sister publication Washington Technology. “The easiest approach isn’t always the best approach.”
Furthermore, financial management and innovation often go hand in hand as agencies look for ways to make the most of tight budgets and work around a notoriously slow procurement process.
Many agencies are turning to agile methodologies, either on their own or with contractors, to develop and deliver solutions incrementally rather than taking years to launch a complete system.
For example, the Department of Veterans Affairs is using infrastructure as code to spin up, tear down and rebuild new environments in minutes via a cloud- based platform that gives the department the scalability it needs for DevOps processes such as automated testing and deployment. Similarly, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office
of Inspector General is enhancing its ability to track adverse medical events at hospitals and monitor complaints to the agency’s hotline, among other activities, by adopting agile development, DevOps and lean management.
In addition, a growing number of agencies are taking advantage of other transaction authorities (OTAs). The Defense Department and others use OTAs to speed experimentation and prototyping without having to comply with the Federal Acquisition Regulation and related mandates. The approach is intended to make it easier to tap into
BY THE NUMBERS
Systems integration
75%
FCW survey respondents who rely on systems integrators for complex IT projects
69%
FCW survey respondents seeking comprehensive solutions to cybersecurity challenges
$6.6 billion
Amount U.S. government spent on systems integration services in 2018
712%
Increase in the Defense Department’s use of other transaction authorities for technology acquisition from fiscal 2015 to 2019
Sources: Center for Strategic and International Studies, FCW, IDC
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