Cloud & GovIT

What You Need To Know About FedRAMP

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST

The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) is a government-wide program established in December 2011 to speed the adoption of cloud computing. FedRAMP includes a set of requirements for federal cloud computing and universal procedures for approving services and providers to work with the government. When contractors feel that they have met FedRAMP requirements, [...]

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend To All Our Cloud Expo Friends!

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 08:00:00 EST

As we head into Thanksgiving Weekend, we bring a brief round-up of some of the many follow-up comments we have been receiving since November's 9th Cloud Expo in Santa Clara, CA. Thanks for your thanks, and see you on the other side...when the countdown steadily begins to New York's mega-event: 10th Cloud Expo | Cloud Expo New York (June 11-14).

Cloud Expo Day 4 Keynote Speaker Profile: Jill T. Singer - NRO

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 09:00:00 EST

With Cloud Expo Silicon Valley (9th Cloud Expo) now in its final day, Thursday November 10 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, here's who is round off the four-day event in our keynote hall this morning...none other than the CIO of the National Reconnaissance Office, Jill T. Singer.

The Cloud Computing Wave Hits Silicon Valley

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 15:30:00 EST

The doors open today on 9th Cloud Expo - Cloud Expo Silicon Valley - the biggest event in the world-beating Cloud Expo series to date, with more members of the cloud computing ecosystem gathered than anyone has ever seen before in one place, to play catch-up with Internet technology's most compelling alternative to running all applications within a traditional corporate data center.

Cloud Expo Speaker Profile: Terry Woloszyn - PerspecSys

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 06:30:00 EDT

What better time, with just a few days now to go before Cloud Expo Silicon Valley (9th Cloud Expo), to bring you a series in which we introduce you in greater detail to our incredible Speaker Faculty for the technical program at the conference? We have technical and strategy sessions for you dealing with every nook and cranny of Cloud Computing, but what of those who are presenting? Who are they, where do they work, what else have they written and/or said about the Cloud that is transforming the world of Enterprise IT?

Security and Cloud Computing

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 07:30:00 EDT

Security remains the number one obstacle to adoption of cloud computing for businesses and federal agencies. Regardless of the deployment model selected--private, public, community, or hybrid—conquering security concerns is required for cloud computing to achieve its full potential as the next generation of IT architecture. This collective representation of senior cyber leadership views from more than two dozen private, federal, academic, and other institutions associated with the AFCEA Cyber Committee centers on three focus areas: visibility, collaboration, and workforce enrichment.

Leading C-Suite Perspectives Upcoming at Cloud Expo Silicon Valley

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 03:30:00 EDT

What does the CIO of the National Reconnaissance Office have in common with the CEOs of Abiquo, Apprenda, Tier3, OutSystems and OpSource, the Co-Founder & CTO of Dell Boomi, the CTOs of Rackspace, rPath, Compuware, BMC, NextIO, SoftLayer, SOASoftware, Gale Technologies, CiRBA and UShareSoft, and the Chief Cloud Executive at VMware? Answer: all are members of the distinguished Speaker Faculty of Cloud Expo Silicon Valley, due to take place November 7-10, 2011, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA - the heart of Silicon Valley.

An A-Z of Cloud Computing at Cloud Expo Silicon Valley

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 05:00:00 EDT

An alphabetical selection of some of the many themes & topics to be discussed at Cloud Expo Silicon Valley (9th Cloud Expo) - being held November 7-10, 2011, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, CA. The markets may still be melting, but Cloud Expo is definitely coming of age!

Will Vivek Kundra’s Departure Have a Negative Effect on Green IT in Gov?

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 11:00:00 EDT

I wonder how much Vivek Kundra's departure will slow down the government's innovation, which is already too slow! I may be able to understand Vivek's frustration with the Federal Government. He is responsible for Data.gov. His plans to consolidate over 800 federal data centers, the Federal Cloud Strategy, and his legacy of the "25 Point Plan" are stuff of legend. I mean how long does it take to steer the course of an aircraft carrier? The federal government is a huge ship that moves very slow. Vivek's a pretty young guy, so he may not know that it takes a while to move large federal agencies within the beltway, or maybe he does and he's too impatient to see it through. Nevertheless, he did a great job as the nation's first CIO. Saving a 3 billion dollars with the IT Dashboard, while serving the President of the United States is no shabby undertaking. My fear is that the government will return to the status quo. This position requires extreme technical intelligence, business practicality, and fiscal activism. My hope is that Richard Spires, CIO of the Department of Homeland Security ensures that the next CIO sticks with the plan. The last thing we need is the beltway shuffle with these innovative initiatives.

Is Cloud Computing for Real?

Fri, 24 Jun 2011 07:15:00 EDT

In October 2009, Enterprise Cloud Computing was considered bleeding edge technology by many but there was something that seemed different about its value potential and adoption rate. For CIOs, it seemed a chance to provision affordable infrastructure quickly, alleviating delays to mission critical deliveries. Federal CIOs interest in Enterprise Cloud Computing was limited to innovators and early adopters. Two years later, where does Enterprise Cloud Computing stand? Is it for real?

Cloud Expo New York Preview: CIO of the NRO to Present June 6

Mon, 30 May 2011 05:00:00 EDT

In the Fall of 2009, while she was Deputy CIO of the Central Intelligence Agency, Jill Tummler Singer shared with attending conference delegates her view that Enterprise Cloud Computing was "The Infrastructure's Ultimate Revenge" - noting it was a faster, better, cheaper, and safer computing environment for the enterprise. Then she wrote about Enterprise Cloud Computing for Cloud Computing Journal, defining it as "a behind-the-firewalls use of commercial, Internet-based cloud technologies specifically focused on one company’s or one business environment’s computing needs."

Cloud Expo New York Preview: The Economic Impact of GovCloud on IT

Sun, 29 May 2011 06:45:00 EDT

In December 2010, the U.S. Federal government awarded cloud computing contracts that totaled over $2B in value. It also announced a mandatory "cloud first" policy, requiring every agency to deploy at least three of its services to the cloud. This transition represents a monumental change in Federal IT strategy. It may also threaten the business model of some of the world's largest IT providers. In his session at the 8th International Cloud Expo, Kevin Jackson, Engineering Fellow with NJVC, will explore the economic impact of GovCloud from the position of the information technology and professional services industries. He will also explore the new business strategies for this new environment.

San Francisco Goes With Microsoft Exchange Cloud

Thu, 19 May 2011 04:39:00 EDT

The City & County of San Francisco has decided to let Microsoft host the email accounts for 23,000 employees in an Exchange Cloud Computing architecture, at a cost of about $1 per week per person. It will consolidate several existing email systems in the process. The $1.2 million annual contract was announced by City & County CIO Jon Walton, who said that alternatives from Google and IBM (Lotus Notes) were also considered. He also touted a 20% savings in overall costs, as mandated by the City's new mayor Ed Lee. Exchange Server has been around since the early 1990s, of course. Lotus Notes is even older. But Exchange's most recent incarnation is being offered by Redmond as part of its "all in" commitment to Cloud Computing. Microsoft has added enough performance improvements, collaboration features, and Cloud-centric focus to win the trust of this major government customer. Walton also mentioned the disaster preparedness aspect of Cloud Computing, something that should resonate with people in an area known for occasional large earthquakes. A big fear within IT departments with Cloud Computing is loss of jobs. Walton said this was not an issue with the Exchange deal, noting that IT employees will now be able to offer better service to the thousands of city and county users rather than spending their time on routine maintenance issues. This is what Cloud technology vendors (and many reporters) have been saying about Cloud all along. Let's see if Walton as good as his word.

Cloud Expo 2011 New York Offers Rays of Light

Wed, 06 Apr 2011 23:35:00 EDT

I'm returning to the US this week after spending more than a year in Asia. I'm pessimistic about many things, as I recently explained in a separate article. But let's talk about the rays of light in today's grim global greyness. Let's talk about Cloud Expo. I don't know much, but I do know that Cloud Expo (at New York's Javits Center June 6-9) presents a golden opportunity for IT managers and executives to see what's on display, listen to the why's and how's of Cloud, and network with their colleagues. I would never underestimate the power of such networking. Say what you will about virtual events: they do save money. But I think you get what you pay for with them. A virtual event is virtual in the human sense of “not really,” rather than virtual in the IT-centric sense of “in effect.” The opportunity to compare notes with one's colleagues, do a reality check, and maybe have a Mojito or two has tremendous value, even if you can't put a price on it. Cloud Expo will have thousands of delegates, has a couple dozen major sponsors, numerous other exhibitors, and a three-day, multi-track conference with an all-star conference faculty that has no equal in the world. Hope to see you there.

Data Centers & Dedicated Servers: What Will Govt Cutbacks Mean to You?

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 06:45:00 EDT

We have discussed this before and I'm sure we will talk about it again - government cutbacks and consolidation of cloud hosting. New York has opened an enormous new data center in Brooklyn where the city will centralize all its infrastructure for its agencies of the decade. It has invested $11 million in equipment for the massive facility and will pay about $3 million yearly to lease the space but in theory it stands to recoup more than $100 million over five years. This of course is where we are currently, the credit crunch is still with us along with the recession and up until a few years ago data center charges were something that organizations didn't really keep an eye on... Now savings in infrastructure can be obtained easily, all government agencies are bearing down on the cloud route. This of course is exacerbated by the fact that all their budgets have been pulled from under them.

Vivek Kundra’s Decision Framework for Cloud Computing Migration

Thu, 03 Mar 2011 09:30:00 EST

The decision framework for cloud migration that US Federal CIO Vivek Kundra recently published as part of his Federal cloud computing strategy, offers advice applicable to all organizations. In my last blog, a cloud of two speeds, I mentioned Vivek Kundra's very readable cloud strategy and the industry stimulus effect this approach can have on the emerging cloud industry. By presenting his strategy not simply as a way to cut costs and reduce budgets, but as a way to get more value from existing IT investments, he enlisted IT as an ally to his plans, instead of a potential opponent. Section two of the strategy - summarised below - is a pragmatic 3 step approach and check-list for migrating services to the cloud, which can also be valuable for organizations outside the governement and outside North America.

Cloud Computing From "Agile Cloud Integration" to "Zero Latency"

Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:00:00 EST

Delegates, speakers, sponsors and exhibitors will be traveling from all over the world to New York this coming June 6-9 to attend 8th International Cloud Expo in New York City, co-located at the Jacob Javits Convention Center with 11th Virtualization Conference & Expo. Here is an early sneak-peek at some of the many Cloud & Virtualization themes and topics due to be discussed in the breakout technical sessions scheduled in the course of the four days.

Federal Cloud Computing Strategy: First Look at New Document

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:30:00 EST

Since the CIO.gov site is down for maintenance I wanted to help spread the word on this new document, the Federal Cloud Computing Strategy. I hate to say this, but I have not read it myself yet! But I have read everything else Federal CIO Vivek Kundra has had a hand in publishing and I know this will be important for us all to read and digest and thought you might want an early look.

Vivek Kundra, Cash-for-Clunkers & Cloud Architecture

Tue, 01 Feb 2011 06:15:00 EST

In reading Vivek Kundra’s “25 Point Implementation Plan To Reform Federal Information”, I was struck by the anecdote regarding how the lack of scalability was the cause for outages and, ultimately, delays in processing transactions on the Car Allowance and Rebate System (CARS) or as it was more commonly known as Cash-for-Clunkers.

Obama Endorses the Value of U.S. Social Technologies

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 09:00:00 EST

"We are the nation that put cars in driveways and computers in offices; the nation of Edison and the Wright brothers; of Google and Facebook. In America, innovation doesn’t just change our lives. It’s how we make a living." With this one sentence, President Barack Obama ushered in once and for all the Age of Sociotechnology, the age that recognizes the importance of the interaction between people and technology in both workplaces and society.

Azure Canada - Unleashing Social Innovation

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:29:56 EST

The most compelling argument for Governments to adopt Cloud Computing is Open Government. Migrating the legacy data-centre to the Cloud will happen but will move slowly due to IT complexities and the usual resistance to outsourcing, whereas in contrast the Cloud is ideal for public-facing web 2.0 community sites, achieved through enterprise content systems with social media capabilities. Accessing these on a SaaS basis will enable agencies to meet directives to make themselves more transparent and to enable enhanced levels of public participation, and demonstrate the quick wins that the directives ask for.

US Treasury Moves to the Cloud

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 07:00:00 EST

Public-facing web sites belonging to the US Treasury Department like the agency main site treasury.gov and little numbers like MyMoney.gov, TIGTA.gov, SIGTARP.gov and IRSOversightBoard.treasury.gov have moved to Amazon EC2 according to government contractor Smartronix, responsible for the migration. It’s supposed to be first cabinet-level agency to follow US CIO Vivek Kundra’s advisory and take to the cloud. The redesigned Treasury.gov site is supposed to be the largest SharePoint implementation in the federal government. It also uses Windows Server and SQL Server 2008, Systems Center Operations Manager and Dta Protection Manager.

Level Five Open Government Innovation

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 12:00:00 EST

Open Government best practices can be utilized to transform national innovation programs. Canada is scoring a 'D for Innovation', and falling behind other nations in their innovation capacities. They also have perceived issues around the bite of their Open Government watchdogs, and while these may seem like unrelated issues, I'd suggest they stem from the same root issue. Ie. An overly involved, authoritarian culture of government will inhibit both. Therefore it highlights the paradoxical nature of the challenge, and why citizens and businesses need to step up their demands in these areas, and participate directly in the solution. While the government isn't as accountable to the public as they should be, then it's no surprise their efforts to improve innovation and subsequent economic growth aren't performing as well as they should. Government organization resistant to public input and scrutiny is by its nature resistant to change and innovation.

One Day the Cloud Really Will Be Big: The Economist

Mon, 03 Jan 2011 07:30:00 EST

"One day the cloud really will be big..." concludes an article in this week's international print edition of The Economist, an intriguing article that sets out to quantify the size of the three main layers of the cloud computing ecosystem.

Putin Says "Da" to Free Software

Wed, 29 Dec 2010 04:15:00 EST

A few months back, in a story mostly about Microsoft’s complicated relationship with the Russian government and its seemingly dualistic role in the ongoing suppression of various free speech and human rights organizations, we also surfaced contemporaneous reports in the Russian language media about an indigenous, government-funded Linux initiative, called Linuksovskaya. The new “national operating system” was reported to be on an aggressive schedule and expected to be released some time in 2012. Fresh reports this week from inside the country now indicate that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is now personally involved in making sure that happens in the second quarter and that by 2015 the whole government is running on free software.

Our Top Five Cloud Predictions for 2011: Kevin Jackson & Larry Carvalho

Tue, 28 Dec 2010 09:45:00 EST

Cloud Computing Journal authors look at the short- and mid-term future of the Cloud. Today we start with KEVIN L. JACKSON Editor, Government Cloud Computing on Ulitzer, and LARRY CARVALHO, the 2011 Instructor of Cloud Expo's ever popular Cloud Computing Bootcamp.

Cloud-First Initiative Threatens Federal Systems Status Quo

Tue, 21 Dec 2010 00:05:00 EST

Vivek Kundra, the CIO of the United States, is getting down to business on the “Cloud First” initiative that was announced by the OMB a few weeks back. He’s been showing a snappy slide deck around town in DC the past few days that will probably affect different people in very different ways. Taxpayers should love it because it is a plan for saving money and improving efficiency throughout the government. Commercial CIOs should learn from it, because it illustrates a practical and practicable approach to cloud computing. And the freebooters and freeloaders of the “federal systems” fraternity should be very, very afraid of it because it says their back-scratching days may be numbered.

Agile Cloud Solutions for Open Government

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:00:00 EST

Launched by our Cloud Ventures incubator, the Open Government Innovation network is a CoP (Community of Practice) focused on the dynamic of how Cloud computing technologies can enable the policies of Open Government. Best practices innovation community This actually aligns wholly with the 25-point ‘Cloud for Clunkers‘ strategy from the Whitehouse CIO to migrate the IT systems of the US Government to Cloud services.

Building Government 2.0 Through Collaborative Software Development

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 10:30:00 EST

If there were ever two concepts that are representative of where we are today in technology, they would have to be Government 2.0 and Community. Unfortunately, they are also two of the most overused and over-hyped phrases in our technology vocabulary. Government 2.0 is a general term referring to a new level of transparency and agility within the Federal space. It has many components, including public-facing efforts like re-launching whitehouse.gov with open source technology such as Drupal (a content management system). However, Government 2.0 also has an inward-facing component relating to how software and systems are designed, built, and managed. Community, in the context of software development, is the use of collaborative development tools and processes to enable shared use, drive the re-use of code, and expedite discussions and cooperation among all project stakeholders, regardless of their geographical location.

Cloud for Clunkers: The 25 Point Plan to Accelerate Open Government

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 07:45:00 EST

Vivek Kundra, White House CIO, has just published a 25 point plan to reform federal IT spending, to deliver better Business Value to the American public for their $80 billion a year spending. What is exciting to our Cloud Ventures point of view is the shift to a “Cloud first” procurement policy.

Cloud Computing is the Future of Business: EMC VP

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 10:15:00 EST

At an event aimed at lawyers and called "Doing Business in the Electronic Age," EMC VP and Deputy General Counsel Krish Gupta has been emphasizing how cloud computing is the future of business. Virtualization and cloud computing are the top two priorities of CIOs, Gupta said.

GSA and Unisys/Google Marks GovCloud Watershed

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:30:00 EST

As widely reported this week, the United States General Services Administration (GSA) has awarded a contract to Unisys to create a secure cloud-based email and collaboration platform. The solution will be based on Google Apps for Government and is expected to save $15M over the next five years when compared to current staff, infrastructure, and contract support costs.

[Update 2] WikiLeaks & Web 3.0 - A Commentary

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 07:45:00 EST

Is Web 3.0 maybe going to be less the utopia we've been envisaging and more like the real, physical world, with all the real-world limitations that follow along with it...?| The latest WikiLeaks ("Cablegate") affair, coming as it does at the very end of the first decade of the 21st Century, comes at an appropriate moment. An undoubted political and dilomatic hornet's nest, the swirling discussions surrounding the organization's drip-drip release of (so far) 612 of the quarter of a million or so dilomatic cables in its possession are all grist to the mill of an "awakening" that in my view clearly imho going to mark the difference between the Web of 2000-1010 and that of 2011 onwards.

The Sweet Science of Cloud Computing

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 15:43:00 EST

One sure sign that a new technology market is approaching critical mass is when people start fighting over it. I’m not talking about abstract arguments and dialectical debates about meanings and means. I’m talkin’ fisticuffs, mano a mano, the sweet science! And with cloud computing, it’s on now, Baby. OK, maybe it was more like one-sided trash talking at the weigh-in before a title bout, but this week we heard plenty of it, in two weight classes, no less. In the middle-weight division, we saw the young and scrappy contender NetSuite mixing it up with aging titlist SAP and at the same time Microsoft got in fellow heavyweight Google’s face, big time. Here’s how it went down.

US Gov't Embraces “Cloud-First” Policy

Thu, 25 Nov 2010 10:15:00 EST

The Whitehouse Office of Management and Budget has announced that, from now on, cloud computing would be the “default approach to IT” for US government agencies. The move comes as an element of a sweeping set of government IT reforms begun last summer intended to “close the IT gap” between the public and private sectors. The cloud-first policy is expected to reduce a 2000+ data center infrastructure by as much as 40%, lowering costs, improving security and performance, and speeding up the deployment of new applications.

The Top 250 Players in the Cloud Computing Ecosystem

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 06:45:00 EDT

In the run-up to the next Cloud Expo, 7th Cloud Expo (November 1-4, 2010) at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley, it's time to give my earlier list a complete overhaul. Here, accordingly, is an expanded list of the most active players in the Cloud Ecosystem.

Minnesota's Office of Enterprise Technology Goes to the Cloud

Sun, 03 Oct 2010 02:15:00 EDT

In an effort to deliver technology services as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible, the State of Minnesota's Office of Enterprise Technology (OET) signed a groundbreaking enterprise-wide service agreement with Microsoft last week. The agreement calls for the State's Enterprise Unified Communications and Collaborations services to be delivered through Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS). The move makes Minnesota the first U.S. state to move to a large collaboration and communication suite in a private cloud environment.

Microsoft Ices Cloud Computing Deal with Minnesota

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 08:58:00 EDT

Another apparently cool thing: The agreement can extend down to the county and local levels, too. "We currently consume cloud-based services for key financial business applications," said Marilyn McCarter, CIO of Scott County, Minnesota. "This agreement creates a tremendous potential opportunity for counties." Scott County is a relatively small but fast-growing county on the edge of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Microsoft will be responsible for app management in this agreement. This should be a good test case for delivering Cloud Computing services remotely to a relatively transparent customer. You can be sure the company will be scrutinized, and its cost savings and other potential benefits widely debated.

Making the Government $$$ Foster Real Innovation and Competition

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 09:41:51 EDT

In the mid '90s, I started up a practice at a large systems integrator helping customers plan, design and implement on-premise e-mail systems. Very often the differentiator was the collaborative functions that an organization could also leverage during the e-mail system implementation. This capability helped departments share information and react to market dynamics faster. At that time we never dreamt of putting email information outside of an organizations network. Customers spent millions in purchasing licenses, hardware and implementation services to give them an edge over their competitors.

IT Giants Identify a Gold Mine in Federal Cloud Computing Market

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 14:03:42 EDT

With all the concerns about security risks relating to the cloud that are frequently brought up, there is no better way for the technology to stand up to scrutiny and quell any nagging doubts than to win over Federal bodies which are inherently apprehensive of turning over data to a third party. High tech firms offering cloud services are doing just that and creating specially segregated environments that live within the country to pacify the Government's rigorous data protection requirements . The perseverance seems to be paying off as Federal agencies which are seeking to alleviate their budget deficits are now taking a serious look at the cloud not just for non-critical apps but even for core operations. The US army is the latest one among them to announce its cloud shift. It is consolidating its data centers by embracing private cloud and has issued a request for proposals for this initiative. The budget for the Army Private Cloud (APC2) encompassing virtualized storage and computing resources is said to be around $249 million over the five-year lifespan of the contracts to be made. Though it is strongly leaning towards private set-ups for security reasons, the Army Statement of work surprisingly indicates that it is not totally averse to dealing with outside commercial data centers if , "the Army Private Cloud will be an enclave separated from the Contractors public cloud so that an appropriate level of security is maintained for DOD data."