In Depth Show Blog – November 26, 2013

Doing more with less is not a new refrain for federal employees already dealing with furloughs and pay freezes. But the concept may push some employees closer to a breaking point with public service.

The Interior Business Center at the Interior Department is only a little more than a year old, at least as that name. The National Business Center was around for a long time before the name change last Oct. 1. Joe Ward, director of the Interior Business Center, says a lot has changed in his tenure at IBC not just the name.

Tools for running your agency’s acquisition programs more smoothly and cheaper are available from the private sector, according to the Government Accountability Office. Now the trick is getting agencies to follow the GAO’s recommendations. Roger Waldron is president of the Coalition for Government Procurement.

The National Security Agency says just because information is classified doesn’t mean authorized users should only be able to handle it when they’re tethered to their desks. As Federal News Radio’s Jared Serbu reports, the agency’s looking for ways to access classified information on tablets and smartphones over commercial wireless networks.

Federal government acquisition reform is about to get mixed up in the National Defense Authorization Act. Some members of the Senate will try to attach the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act to the bill next week. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) is one of the sponsors of the House version of the bill. He tells Executive Editor Jason Miller how FITARA is one part of the cure to the way agencies buy technology.