MeriTalking

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MeriTalk leverages an award-winning editorial team produces unmatched news, analysis, and insight that improves the outcomes of government information technology. MeriTalk's editorial mission is to engage Federal chief information officers, along with their industry counterparts and Federal IT policymakers at the most senior levels of government, through news, feature stories, exclusive studies and reports, events, and professional multimedia productions. A one-stop-shop for senior government IT leaders who are looking for news that matters, best practices, and practical insights into today’s biggest hot-button issues in Federal IT. MeriTalk keeps you informed about the topics that mean the most to you and creates a targeted platform for cooperation, public-private dialogue, highlighting innovation, and sharing informed opinions.

MeriTalk

Alexandria, Virginia


    • Apr 25, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 20m AVG DURATION
    • 76 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from MeriTalking

    Podcast: From Vision to Velocity: Insights on Federal CAIO 2025 Priorities

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 25, 2025 38:27


    Podcast: Putting Data to Work: Scaling the Zero Trust Journey

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 24, 2025 23:57


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery chats with George Teas, Vice President of Solutions Architecture at Elastic, about the Federal zero trust journey. As agencies move from crawl to run, they face mounting challenges with visibility, interoperability, and scalability. Teas shares insights on how agencies can harness data across the five pillars of […]

    Podcast: Contested Logistics: Strategic Approaches for Sustaining SOF Superiority

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 7, 2025 23:04


    In this episode of MeriTalking, Gen. Kurt L. Sonntag, a member of the EY U.S. Army Advisory Council, and Joe Blanton, director, strategic initiatives at GDIT discuss key vulnerabilities in global supply chains, the technologies driving logistics capabilities, and the significance of data management in logistics, and more.

    Podcast: Strategic Insights on Hybrid Multi-Cloud for Government Agencies

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 12, 2024 21:48


    In this episode of MeriTalking, Citrix's David Smith, senior director, public sector sales and Gary Pentecost, senior director, account technical strategist, sit down with MeriTalk's Gail Emery to explore why agencies should adopt a hybrid multi-cloud approach. They also provide key considerations for agencies as they develop hybrid multi-cloud strategies.

    Podcast: From Challenges to Change: Insights on FY25 Federal CIO Priorities

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 19, 2024 19:13


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Surya Durvasula, senior vice president and general manager, Dell Technologies, Federal, and Eric Trexler, senior vice president of public sector, Palo Alto Networks, to discuss the findings of the “Tech Tonic: FY25 Federal CIO Forecast” and provide their own recommendations on where CIOs should […]

    Podcast: Digital Engineering: A Modern Method for System Design and Development

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 20, 2024 29:39


    In this episode of MeriTalking, Mike Nash, director of engineering and Kent Laursen, GDIT's technology director for digital engineering, sit down with MeriTalk's Gail Emery to explore how digital engineering provides benefits for Federal organizations.

    Podcast: Innovation in Cloud Security Unifies Prevention and Protection Solutions

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2024 25:18


    Enterprise security is undergoing a significant transformation as Federal agencies adopt cloud applications and a decentralized approach to networking. In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Norman St. Laurent, Federal product marketing manager for security at Cisco, to discuss the intersection of Federal cybersecurity mandates and cloud-centric modernization. They explore how […]

    Podcast: Eliminate Analysis Paralysis With Extended Detection and Response

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 11, 2024 13:23


    State and local governments are using more devices, applications, and tools than ever before – increasing their cybersecurity complexity. And with limited resources, many IT teams are unable to create a comprehensive view of their security posture as threats evolve in sophistication. In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's John Curran sits down with Peter Romness, […]

    Podcast: Operationalizing Generative AI

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 1, 2024 22:22


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Kevin Chin, director of generative AI, and Jackson Scott, senior research scientist for the AI/Machine learning accelerator at Leidos, to explore how agencies can overcome the challenge of fighting public perception of generative AI and prepare their systems and teams for enterprise-wide implementation of […]

    Podcast: Enabling Federal Technical, Cultural Transformation

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2024 23:18


    Federal IT is experiencing an explosion of complexity. At the same time, government is being asked to innovate and move faster. To meet these requirements and reduce complexity, agencies must change the way they work – both technically and culturally. In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery is joined by Brian Mikkelsen, Datadog's vice […]

    Podcast: Uplevel ICAM for Interoperability and Security

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 16, 2024 21:03


    Efficient, effective government operations depend on interoperable systems that connect employees, citizens, and partners to the resources they need – securely. But legacy identity, credential, and access management (ICAM) can result in siloed, incompatible systems and inadequate access controls. In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Grace Dille sits down with Bryan Rosensteel, U.S. Federal chief […]

    Podcast: The Combination Punch Agencies Need for Better Cybersecurity

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2023 15:26


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Peter Romness, cybersecurity principal, CISO Advisors Office at Cisco, to explore how agencies need unifed cybersecurtity solutions, visibility across their enviornment, and comprehenseive threat intelligence capabilities to go toe-to-toe against bad actors – and earn the decision.

    Podcast: The Role of Identity in the National Cybersecurity Strategy

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 31, 2023 14:45


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Brandon Iske, a principal solutions architect at Okta, and Bill Wells, a senior solutions architect at Amazon Web Services, to discuss zero trust progress and challenges, why identity is the foundation of zero trust, and how Okta and AWS work together to help agencies achieve zero trust.

    Podcast: The Key Role of Operational Resilience in Cybersecurity

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 31, 2023 26:57


    While the Federal government and large corporations may dominate headlines about cyberattacks and disruptive system outages, state and local governments are far from immune to system failures – and catastrophic downtime that affects the public's trust in government. On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery is joined by Jim Richberg, the public sector chief […]

    Podcast: AI Offers Quick Wins, Long-Term Mission Support to Federal Agencies

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 14, 2023 22:23


    In this episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Gail Emery sits down with Kathleen Featheringham, vice president of artificial intelligence and machine learning at Maximus, to explore the big-picture potential of AI and how agencies can achieve immediate mission value from it.

    Podcast – Mapping the Internet for Better Cybersecurity

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2023 29:56


    In this MeriTalking podcast, MeriTalk's Joe Franco is joined by Matt Lembright, director of Federal applications at Censys, which maintains a comprehensive internet map used for threat hunting. We'll discuss the findings in Censys's 2023 State of the Internet Report, the security vulnerabilities it uncovered, how Federal organizations can adapt – and how using data […]

    Podcast: UX and Emerging Tech Come Together to Transform Government Services

    Play Episode Listen Later May 4, 2023 21:33


    Across the public sector, agencies are seeing increasing demand for faster, digitally enabled service delivery – and a better user experience, for both employees and constituents. In this MeriTalking podcast, MeriTalk's Gail Emery is joined by Joe Jeter, senior vice president of Federal technology at Maximus, to explore how user-centric approach to digital modernization, coupled with emerging technologies, can dramatically improve the citizen, employee, and user experience – the total experience with government.

    Podcast: Understanding the TikTok Ban and Why Government Needs to Think Bigger

    Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2023 21:21


    The Federal government and numerous states are concerned that user data collected by some popular apps could be shared with foreign governments, including China. In this episode of MeriTalking, Joe Franco talks with Lookout's Kristina Balaam about the data that popular apps collect, how it might be used by foreign governments, and how bans on Chinese apps can be enforced.

    Podcast: Closing the Federal Technology Skills Gap

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 13, 2023 13:11


    The Federal government is facing a workforce crisis, especially with skilled technology talent. Retention, recruitment, and retirement issues are hindering hiring managers, who are looking to fill critical open roles in order to meet mission objectives and new Federal mandates. In this MeriTalking podcast, MeriTalk's Joe Franco is joined by Craig McCullough, Pluralsight's senior vice […]

    Data Noise to Cyber Advantage

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2023 20:13


    Cyberattacks, connected devices, and data are growing exponentially every year, into the billions, trillions, and zettabytes, respectively. Neither people nor traditional cybersecurity solutions can keep up with the data or the attacks. In this episode of MeriTalking, NVIDIA's Killian Sexsmith and Matt Penn outline the burgeoning cybersecurity problem agencies face today and explore the Federal […]

    Podcast: Data Noise to Cyber Advantage

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2023 20:13


    Cyberattacks, connected devices, and data are growing exponentially every year, into the billions, trillions, and zettabytes, respectively. Neither people nor traditional cybersecurity solutions can keep up with the data or the attacks. In this episode of MeriTalking, NVIDIA's Killian Sexsmith and Matt Penn outline the burgeoning cybersecurity problem agencies face today and explore the Federal […]

    Putting Computer Vision to Work for Government

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 11, 2022 15:14


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's editor-in-chief John Curran sits down with Ryan Simpson, Senior Data Scientist at NVIDIA and Mike Broadwater, Vice President of Technology Services at Government Acquisitions, Inc. (GAI), to dive into CV – applications, maturity, adoption barriers, and examples of how agencies are putting CV to work.

    Putting Computer Vision to Work for Government

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 11, 2022


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's editor-in-chief John Curran sits down with Ryan Simpson, Senior Data Scientist at NVIDIA and Mike Broadwater, Vice President of Technology Services at Government Acquisitions, Inc. (GAI), to dive into CV – applications, maturity, adoption barriers, and examples of how agencies are putting CV to work.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 73

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2022 3:01


    CISA gets procurement authority, NIST picks quantum-resistant algorithms, NATO creates 1B euro tech investment fund, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 73

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2022


    CISA gets procurement authority, NIST picks quantum-resistant algorithms, NATO creates 1B euro tech investment fund, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 72

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 1, 2022 3:29


    DoD and VA EHR oversight and rollouts, CISA updates to Cloud Security TRA, new DoD AI strategy, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 72

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 1, 2022


    DoD and VA EHR oversight and rollouts, CISA updates to Cloud Security TRA, new DoD AI strategy, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 71

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 24, 2022


    FY23 DoD funding moves forward, TMF Board funds zero trust security projects, IRS expands use of AI-powered bots, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 71

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 24, 2022 3:00


    FY23 DoD funding moves forward, TMF Board funds zero trust security projects, IRS expands use of AI-powered bots, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 70

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2022 3:24


    Martorana releases the IT Operating Plan, CISA deploys advisors on site at agencies, House approves medical device cybersecurity bill, and more

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 70

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2022


    Martorana releases the IT Operating Plan, CISA deploys advisors on site at agencies, House approves medical device cybersecurity bill, and more

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 69

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 10, 2022 3:32


    IoT ransomware risks, cyber incident reporting and workforce development, AI proposals, satellite security standards, and more.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 69

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 10, 2022


    IoT ransomware risks, cyber incident reporting and workforce development, AI proposals, satellite security standards, and more.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 68

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 3, 2022 2:41


    DOE's Frontier supercomputer is named fastest in the world; HHS launches ARPA-H; CISA, DHS, and DoD propose 5G Security Evaluation Process, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 68

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 3, 2022


    DOE's Frontier supercomputer is named fastest in the world; HHS launches ARPA-H; CISA, DHS, and DoD propose 5G Security Evaluation Process, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 67

    Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2022 2:57


    New TMF awards and requests for more funds, public-private collaboration on cyber defense, OPM's skills-based hiring guidelines, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 67

    Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2022


    New TMF awards and requests for more funds, public-private collaboration on cyber defense, OPM's skills-based hiring guidelines, and more. For more news and insights on today's mission-critical IT challenges, check us out on MeriTV.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 66

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2022 3:12


    CISA issues emergency directive, DeRusha reports “tremendous progress” on cyber EO, MeriTalk publishes new research on CDM, and more.

    MeriTalking: What Happened This Week – Ep. 66

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2022


    CISA issues emergency directive, DeRusha reports “tremendous progress” on cyber EO, MeriTalk publishes new research on CDM, and more.

    Podcast: Begin at the End: Breaking Down Endpoint Security

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2022 33:09


    Endpoint devices, or personal laptops, government-issued devices, tablets, mobile phones, etc. used outside of the network perimeter are key factors in a successful telework model. Keeping those devices secure from any location at any time is at the top of all IT team priorities. But are the security tools in place strong enough to combat bad actors, could Federal IT teams have too many endpoint security tools in their toolkit, and what is often overlooked on the journey to better endpoint security?

    Podcast: Begin at the End: Breaking Down Endpoint Security

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2022


    Endpoint devices, or personal laptops, government-issued devices, tablets, mobile phones, etc. used outside of the network perimeter are key factors in a successful telework model. Keeping those devices secure from any location at any time is at the top of all IT team priorities. But are the security tools in place strong enough to combat bad actors, could Federal IT teams have too many endpoint security tools in their toolkit, and what is often overlooked on the journey to better endpoint security?

    Podcast: Tame Tool Sprawl

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2021 13:13


    Digital security breaches have shown us that Federal agencies are more vulnerable than anyone thought, and their security tools are no longer effectively defending against them. This begs the question, what can IT leaders and staff at all levels do to better protect Federal networks? The short answer: it's time to rethink our approach to basic security and how we defend every endpoint across the enterprise.

    Podcast: Tame Tool Sprawl

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2021


    Digital security breaches have shown us that Federal agencies are more vulnerable than anyone thought, and their security tools are no longer effectively defending against them. This begs the question, what can IT leaders and staff at all levels do to better protect Federal networks? The short answer: it's time to rethink our approach to basic security and how we defend every endpoint across the enterprise.

    Podcast: Building Digital First Government

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 1, 2021 39:13


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Nicole Burdette sits down with Jay Boisseau, AI & HPC Technology Strategist at Dell Technologies, and Marc Hamilton, Vice President of Solutions Architecture and Engineering at NVIDIA, to explore the steps agencies are taking toward “digital first government” and what this means from a workforce, cybersecurity, and emerging technology perspective.  

    Podcast: Building Digital First Government

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 1, 2021


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's Nicole Burdette sits down with Jay Boisseau, AI & HPC Technology Strategist at Dell Technologies, and Marc Hamilton, Vice President of Solutions Architecture and Engineering at NVIDIA, to explore the steps agencies are taking toward “digital first government” and what this means from a workforce, cybersecurity, and emerging technology perspective.  

    Podcast: Coordinate the Cyber Defense

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 25, 2021 22:38


    Following several Federal initiatives published this year such as the National Security Strategic Guidance and Cybersecurity Executive Order, greater collaboration between the public and private sectors is critical to better understand and manage risk.

    Podcast: Coordinate the Cyber Defense

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 25, 2021


    Following several Federal initiatives published this year such as the National Security Strategic Guidance and Cybersecurity Executive Order, greater collaboration between the public and private sectors is critical to better understand and manage risk.

    Podcast: Build Diverse Cyber Teams

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 5, 2021 11:33


    As the cyber threats we face become more diverse across the nation and globe, security, and IT operations teams must encompass diverse perspectives. For MeriTalking's first installment of the “Human Side of Cyber” series, MeriTalk's Nicole Burdette sits down with Teddra Burgess, Senior Vice President, Public Sector at Tanium to dive into the importance of having diverse perspectives and experiences on an organization's cyber response team.

    Podcast: Build Diverse Cyber Teams

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 5, 2021


    As the cyber threats we face become more diverse across the nation and globe, security, and IT operations teams must encompass diverse perspectives. For MeriTalking's first installment of the “Human Side of Cyber” series, MeriTalk's Nicole Burdette sits down with Teddra Burgess, Senior Vice President, Public Sector at Tanium to dive into the importance of having diverse perspectives and experiences on an organization's cyber response team.

    Mission Success with AI: Moving from Pilots to Proficiency

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2021 15:45


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's John Curran speaks with Al Ford, Federal AI Alliances Manager at Dell Technologies, about Federal AI readiness and challenges. Ford shares ideas on the most helpful steps from a technology, infrastructure, and workforce perspective.

    Mission Success with AI: Moving from Pilots to Proficiency

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2021 15:45


    On today's episode of MeriTalking, MeriTalk's John Curran speaks with Al Ford, Federal AI Alliances Manager at Dell Technologies, about Federal AI readiness and challenges. Ford shares ideas on the most helpful steps from a technology, infrastructure, and workforce perspective.

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