“Artificial intelligence and associated data analytics processes, distributed workforce support, cybersecurity and DevSecOps are four major tech areas poised for growth in the federal government, according to a recent report by tech accelerator Dcode.”
“All four categories have shown considerable promise for improving the efficacy of government agencies, the report said, with certain wings of the federal government already having made demonstrable progress in leveraging them to better deliver public services. These areas also are those in which private-public partnerships will thrive, the report added.”
AI and Data Analytics
“AI and complex data analytics has been a particular focus at health-oriented agencies lately. The Department of Veterans Affairs has emerged as an early adopter of AI for medical research, with the greater Veterans Health Administration using its repository of health and genomic information to advance both physical and mental health care.”
“The VA’s National Artificial Intelligence Institute has overseen substantial internal research, as well as collaborative AI sprints with government and private sector partners oriented to improve diagnostics. This has included applying data analytics to better understand the pathology of COVID-19, a process which has occurred alongside the VA’s particular emphasis on developing “trustworthy AI” or data curated within an ethical and open framework…”
Remote Work
“The abrupt shift to telework during the COVID-19 pandemic has driven some federal agencies to make long-term investments in capacities that allow for secure and effective remote collaboration.”
“‘A challenge many departments and agencies faced was how to continue collaboration and accessibility to maintain efficiency while remote,’ Dcode wrote in the report. ‘As the entire workforce adapts to different situations, like full-time telework or hybrid models, tools that facilitate collaboration and enable remote project management are vital.'”
“The departments of Agriculture and Veterans Affairs engage in research-oriented and data-intensive work, leading both agencies to invest further in secure data sharing and collaboration that has allowed their respective projects to continue amidst the pandemic.”
“However, both VA and USDA had already been advancing their cloud-computing strategies, which the pandemic only amplified. The General Services Administration is currently assisting less technically modernized agencies with adopting cloud-based telework platforms…” Read the full article here.
Source: The In-Demand Tech Areas Facing Federal Agencies — By Adam Patterson, May 17, 2021. GovernmentCIO.
