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Cost Estimating NewsBrief: March 24, 2023
For contractors, the 2024 budget request doesn’t quite add up
(Federal News Network) Federal contractors don’t see a lot of room for growth after inflation in fiscal 2024, with a few large agencies actually requesting a reduction in funding relative to what was enacted in 2023. For a few observations, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin spoke to Stephanie Kostro, executive vice president for Policy at the Professional Services Council. Read More
US Marine Corps Amends Logistics Doctrine to Include IT, Cybersecurity
(Executive Gov) The U.S. Marine Corps has revised a logistics doctrine first published in 1997 in an effort to align its conceptual framework with current warfighting principles. The Marine Corps Doctrinal Publication 4, Logistics covers the branch’s increasing use of data and information technology, as well as other global challenges in expeditionary force sustainment, the service said Tuesday. In the new version, cyberspace and space have been included in the five operational domains of the Marine Corps. It discusses how cyberthreats can disrupt the service’s logistics, and emphasizes the need for Marines to have an in-depth understanding of these threats. Read More
Quantum Sensing Has ‘Critical’ Potential for Electrical Grid, Official Says
(NextGov) The Department of Energy is looking into the myriad applications quantum information sciences can have within the transition to a cleaner and more secure energy economy and infrastructure. Speaking during a forum hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Rima Oueid, a senior commercialization executive at Energy, explained that the agency is exploring how to apply faster, more secure QIS tech to the country’s electrical grid. Read More
NSA, CISA Recommend Identity & Access Management Best Practices Via New Document
(Federal News Network) The National Security Agency and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency have developed a document as part of the Enduring Security Framework to provide system administrators with recommended best practices related to identity and access management. Alan Laing, NSA lead for the IAM working group, said in a statement published Tuesday that rigorous IAM enables organizations to detect and prevent malicious cyber actors from gaining access to data of national importance and corrupting critical systems. Read More
Government employees and defense contractors still have got bad passwords, report says
(McKinsey & Company) The concept of skinny design—making product packaging smaller—has potential benefits for consumers, retailers, and the environment. This episode of McKinsey Talks Operations explores cost savings, sustainability, and the commercial advantages of reducing the size of product packaging, and discusses innovative solutions such as nesting products and honeycomb packing formats to reduce stockouts and improve sustainability and customer experience. Additionally, we will highlight the importance of cross-functional collaboration in product design and the need for stakeholders to align incentives for optimized product development programs. Read More
What’s your superpower? How companies can build an institutional capability to achieve competitive advantage
(McKinsey & Company) CEOs, just like everyone else, suffer from the paradox of choice. Companies have endless initiatives and plans, all with the promise to “transform” the organization and deliver attractive financial returns. But how is a CEO to prioritize and make choices? Our experience indicates the answer may lie in focusing on the one institutional capability that can separate you from the rest. In a word, CEOs and their companies should look to build a superpower. Read More
Sorry, E.T. fans: Interstellar visitor ‘Oumuamua isn’t an alien spacecraft. It’s just passing gas.
(Space.com) Since its surprise arrival in the solar system in 2017, the interstellar object ‘Oumuamua has puzzled scientists. A duo of American astronomers now think they have solved one of the space rock’s lingering mysteries. First thought to be an asteroid, later recast as a likely comet, and by some even considered a possible alien spaceship, the 650-foot-long (200 meters) ‘Oumuamua zoomed through the central solar system in late 2017. During its brief visit, the rock approached Earth within 15 million miles (24 million kilometers), about 62 Earth-moon distances, and disappeared a few weeks after its discovery. Read More