TSP's G Fund Helps Delay Debt Ceiling
Sequester Hits Disaster Relief
Feds Respond to Oklahoma Tornadoes
Making Government 'Simpler'
OK Senator Wants Aid Offset by Budget Cuts
Boldly Go Where No Fed's Gone Before
AUTHOR ARCHIVES
Brittany Ballenstedt
Blogger
Brittany Ballenstedt writes Nextgov's Wired Workplace blog, which delves into the issues facing employees who work in the federal information technology sector. Before joining Nextgov, Brittany covered federal pay and benefits issues as a staff correspondent for Government Executive and served as an associate editor for National Journal's Technology Daily. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Mansfield University and originally hails from Pennsylvania. She currently lives near Travis Air Force Base, Calif., where her husband is stationed.
New Cloud Security Credential Coming in 2014
April 25, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
Two organizations are teaming up to create a professional IT certification that combines information security with cloud computing. (ISC)2 and the Cloud Security Alliance will develop the credential, which will build on existing certifications offered by both organizations, including (ISC)2’s Certified Information Systems Security Professional and CSA’s Certificate of Cloud ...
Health IT Salaries Lag Behind Most IT Fields
April 24, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
Health IT professionals are seeing relatively flat salaries this year, and many are slightly behind their counterparts in other IT fields when it comes to compensation, according to a new report. The Information Week 2013 Salary Survey of 1,297 health IT professionals found the median annual base pay for health ...
Women Are Narrowing the Gap in IT Jobs
April 23, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
Women in information technology jobs are earning roughly the same salaries as their male counterparts, provided they share equal levels of experience and education and parallel job titles, a recent report found. Now, a new report shows that the number of women it IT jobs is also on the rise. ...
IT Fields Rank Among Top Jobs in 2013
April 23, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
If you work in IT, you’re working in one of the top job fields when it comes to areas like salary, work environment and hiring outlook, according to new rankings released Monday. CareerCast.com, a career website, ranked 200 jobs from best to worst based on five criteria: physical demands, work ...
DHS Creates Cyber Internships for Community College Students, Veterans
April 22, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
The Homeland Security Department on Thursday announced a new honors program designed to draw students to cybersecurity programs at community colleges. The new Cyber Student Initiative, which is part of the Secretary Honors Program announced last fall, is an attempt to engage community college students, including veterans, in cybersecurity work ...
Homeland Security Acts on Cyber Workforce Recommendations
April 19, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
The Homeland Security Department is working to implement 11 recommendations from an advisory council to better develop, recruit and retain sophisticated cybersecurity talent. In a webinar on Thursday sponsored by Government Executive and Northrop Grumman, Dr. Doug Maughan, director of the cybersecurity division at DHS, said the department is moving ...
Tech Pros Often Don't Negotiate Salary, But They Should
April 18, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
Qualified technology professionals continue to be in high demand, so it’s a bit of a surprise that more than half accept job offers without negotiating salaries or hourly rates. While this may be good news for government -- which often has little room to negotiate salaries because of preset pay ...
Is Big Data a Big Problem?
April 18, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
While big data could provide tremendous value to federal agencies, it also poses challenges for agencies that do not have adequate staff to leverage it, according to a new study. The study "Big Data, Big Brains," released Thursday by MeriTalk and NetApp, found that all 17 federal and private sector ...
House Passes Bill to Enhance Cyber Workforce
April 17, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
The House on Tuesday passed legislation that aims to help the federal government recruit, hire and train cybersecurity workers. The Cybersecurity Enhancement Act (H.R. 756), sponsored by Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, passed the House by a vote of 402-16. The bill would establish a task force with representatives from the ...
New Tool Can Help Agencies Assess Cyber Skills
April 17, 2013
FROM NEXTGOV
A new tool released Wednesday can help organizations like federal agencies to better recruit cybersecurity talent and assess the skills of current cyber staff. The new CyberTalent Assessment Tool, developed by the SANS Institute, helps recruiters and HR professionals have a better understanding of cyber job candidates, particularly in verifying ...
