News

Highlighted Articles

Cloud First is about delivering value, not counting services, says OMB official (FierceGovernmentIT.com, May 30, 2013)
Cloud First, a cornerstone of the Office of Management and Budget's 25-point plan to reform federal information technology, continues to be a priority for OMB and will be addressed in agency PortfolioStat sessions this summer, said Scott Renda, cloud computing portfolio manager at OMB. Read more

DOD Cloud Adoption Helps U.S. Troops Stay Connected (Data Center Knowledge, May 24, 2013)
As the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) adopts new types of globally distributed technologies, it is working to improve communications for service members, both on the battlefield and with family at home. While the corporate world may take for granted the ability to clearly relay a message between multiple parties, communications in the military’s IT world can be critically important. Read more

Agencies Reach 34 percent of Data Center Consolidation Goals (GovWin.com, May 21, 2013)
The 24 agencies participating in the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) have achieved close to 34% of their goals for the number of data center closures. However, despite this progress, it appears that agencies will not hit the 2015 target. On top of that challenge, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has yet to assess agency efforts in terms of cost savings. Read more

Making US Federal IT Rationalization More Rational (DataCenter Dynamics, May 20, 2013)
While agencies of the federal government have collectively shut down hundreds of data centers since the government-wide data center consolidation initiative started in 2010, measuring the initiative's success by the number of data centers closed is not enough. Modern IT means a lot more than a smaller physical and energy footprint, and the people overseeing the government-wide push now recognize that. Read more

What’s Next for Data Centers: Virtualization and SDN Take Over (GCN.com, May 8, 2013)
Someone working in data centers 30 years ago wouldn't recognize them today, and likely the next 30 years will see just as many changes. But what will those changes be? Read more

Savings from data center consolidation unclear, likely minimal so far (FierceGovernmentIT.com, May 15, 2013)
Savings so far from federal data center consolidation are difficult to estimate for their lack of reporting, but are "believed to be minimal" as of last November--nearly 3 years after the OMB launched an initiative to reduce the number of federal data centers by 40 percent--says the GAO. Read more

Blog: Three years later, the federal government is still clueless about consolidation (ZDNET.com, May 15, 2013)
It’s been three years since the announcements that the federal government would be closing and consolidating datacenters to streamline IT processes and achieve $3 billion a year in cost savings directly from the closures by the 2015 target date. According to a study released by the GAO, not only is the process not on track but the process still lacks mechanisms to measure the progress and dollar savings, placing blame on the OMB. Read more

GAO: Metrics, leadership leave savings unclear in data center consolidation (FCW.com May 14, 2013)
The Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative was supposed to save billions of taxpayer dollars through optimized IT efforts and reduced redundancy. A new GAO report, however, warns that poor leadership and a lack of metrics mean the total savings over the past three are almost impossible to measure. Read more

Agencies can’t count the savings in consolidation push (GCN.com, May 14, 2013)
While agency IT officials are realizing tangible benefits from data center consolidation, they are having a hard time demonstrating cost savings, according to federal IT professionals surveyed in a new report by MeriTalk. And only half of them think the federal government will hit its goal of closing 1,200 data centers by 2015. Read more

Data Center Consolidation Paying Off for Federal Agencies (NextGov.com, May 14, 2013)
In the year 2010, the OMB launched the data center consolidation project to close 1200 data centers by the year 2015. Federal agencies have quickly realized that there are plenty of benefits to be had by data center consolidation, including operational efficiencies and cost-savings. Read more

Executive order makes open data the new normal (FCW.com, May 2013)
President Obama issued an executive order May 9 to require civilian agencies to produce data in open, machine-readable form to promote public access and commercial use. The presidential order and an accompanying implementation memo from the Office of Management and Budget puts teeth behind a policy launched almost one year ago with the release of the administration's Digital Government strategy, which touted open data as a potential engine of economic growth. Read more

White House Releases Open Data Policy (Information Week)
President Obama on Thursday signed an executive order requiring that from now on, all data generated by the government must be made available to the public in open, machine-readable formats. The Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Science and Technology Policy also released an Open Data Policy to ensure that federal agencies manage government information as an asset. Read more

Obama administration pushes open data in executive order (Computer World)
U.S. President Barack Obama has signed an executive order requiring that government data be made available in open, machine-readable formats, expanding open-access requirements from earlier in his administration. A new open data policy, released along with the executive order Thursday, calls information a "valuable national asset" with value that multiples when it is easily accessible to the public. Read more

Hearing set to probe data center progress (FCW.com, May 6, 2013)
By 2015, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FCDDI) is supposed to close or consolidate 1,200 of some 2,900 identified data centers under the watchful eye of the Office of Management and Budget and a joint task force drawn from 24 different agencies. FDCCI's progress—and the accountability of its oversight bodies—will be the focus of a field hearing the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's Government Operations Subcommittee has scheduled for May 14 at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. Read more

What Keeps Federal CIOs up at Night (FCW.com, May 2, 2013)
Federal chief information officers are seeking more authority over department budgets, worrying about the continued overspending on operations and maintenance, and questioning their ability to maintain a high-quality workforce in a time of pay freezes and budget cuts, according to a survey released May 2. Read more

Budget tops list of concerns in annual CIO survey (FierceGovernmentIT.com, May 2, 2013)
Budget is the top concern among federal chief information officers in an annual survey from TechAmerica and Grant Thorton, published May 2. Based on interviews with 41 federal CIOs, report authors say federal information technology leaders are concerned about budget constraints caused by the continuing resolution and sequestration, and inadequate budget authorities that impact how much control they have over IT programs. Read more

2014 budget request points to new opportunities (Washington Technology, May 1, 2013)
More shared services, consolidation and cloud computing -- that’s where the Office of Management and Budget expects to find IT savings in 2014. More citizen-facing innovative applications, more mobility for the government, and more cybersecurity -- that’s where the White House will support higher spending. Read more

Obama Eyes $2 billion Increase in IT budget (Federal Times, April 17, 2013)
The president’s budget proposes nearly $2 billion in additional information technology funding for 2014, which would raise overall IT spending to $82 billion. The Veterans Affairs Department would receive the biggest funding hike — 22 percent, or $722 million — compared with 2012, according data from the Office of Management and Budget. Read more

New York State and SUNY Partner for Data Center Consolidation (Government Technology, April 11, 2013)
As part of a larger effort to rework the state’s IT infrastructure, New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on April 10 that the state's approximately 50 data centers spread across New York would be consolidated, saving the state an expected $1 billion over the next 20 years, or $50 million yearly, according to the governor’s office. Read more

IT spending up 2.1 percent in president's budget (FCW.com, April 10, 2013)
The Obama administration budget for fiscal year 2014 includes a modest increase in overall IT spending. Total outlays are just under $82 billion, with $42.3 billion in civilian-agency IT spending, and $39.5 going to defense IT. Overall this represents a 2.1 percent uptick in federal IT investments over the 2012 appropriation of $80.2 billion. Read more

10 Benefits of Virtualization in the Data Center (TechRepublic.com, April 10, 2013)
If you’re thinking about migrating to a hosted data center or looking for ways to improve your on-premise data center, I have one word for you: virtualization. Offering profound changes to the way data centers perform, virtualization makes sense on multiple levels. Here are 10 key benefits of data center virtualization. Read more

Federal Data Center Consolidation Changes Approach (Government Technology, April 3, 2013)
Back in 2011, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced that consolidation of federal data centers could reduce the number of datacenters by 40 percent and save the government billions of dollars -- and while that goal remains, the path to this goal has taken a turn. On Mar. 27, U.S. CIO Steven VanRoekel announced in a blog post a revision to PortfolioStat, the OMB’s approach to analyzing and rehauling IT. Read more

OMB's revised PortfolioStat process simplifies IT reporting requirements (Federal News Radio, April 2, 2013)
The Office of Management and Budget is giving agencies less work. Yes, you heard correctly, less work. Federal Chief Information Officer Steve VanRoekel and Jeff Zients, acting director of OMB, outlined changes to the types of reports and number of reports agencies must now submit as part of the updated PortfolioStat process. In a memo to agency heads last week, they said the goal is quality over quantity. Read more

U.S. CIO Commences $2.5B in IT Spending Cuts (Wall Street Journal, March 31, 2013)
United States CIO Steven VanRoekel Thursday said the federal agencies are using cloud computing and analytics to help trim $2.5 billion in government IT spending through 2015. The spending cuts are a result of work done through PortfolioStat, a program Mr. VanRoekel initiated in 2012 to reduce IT spending by identifying duplicative IT programs across federal agencies. Read more

Federal CIO Calls for Government-Wide ‘IT as a Service’ (ComputerWorld, March 29, 2013)
U.S. CIO Steven VanRoekel, along with acting Office of Management and Budget Director Jeffrey Zients, this week announced the launch of PortfolioStat 2.0, an updated version of the Obama administration's government-wide directive for CIOs to take a hard look at their IT operations with the goal of cutting costs and eliminating duplicative or ineffectual programs and systems. Read more

Federal CIO Announces PortfolioStat 2.0 (InformationWeek, March 28, 2013)
The White House this week began overhauling its IT portfolio reviews as part of an ongoing effort to reduce spending by federal agencies. Last March, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) launched a program called PortfolioStat, which conducted sessions with agencies to examine where they were spending money on IT. Through those sessions, OMB identified more than $2.5 billion in spending reductions that could be achieved from fiscal years 2013 through 2015. Read more

Road to Data Center Convergence Starts as a Fork in the Road (GCN.com, March 28, 2013)
As government agencies and municipalities turn to converged infrastructures to consolidate and unify data centers and build private clouds, they face a choice of technologies: reference architectures or integrated systems? Which one works best depends on agencies' existing infrastructure and what they are trying to achieve. Read more

PortfolioStat update integrates FDCCI, in attempt to streamline reporting (FierceGovernmentIT.com, April 1, 2013)
One year after the Office of Management introduced PortfolioStat reviews, administration officials are tweaking the oversight process to incorporate lessons learned and changes in technology. Read more

Challenge and Opportunity Await in Data Center Consolidation (FCW.com, March 21, 2013)
As agencies scramble to comply with cost-cutting IT initiatives, many are turning the challenges inherent in data center consolidation into opportunities and taking the long view on expected savings. Read more

Data center initiative to become part of PortfolioStat (FCW.com, March 13, 2013)
Created in 2010, FDCCI’s objective to close or consolidate some 1,200 of nearly 2,900 federal data centers was intended to be just one portion of a broader campaign to curb waste and inefficiency in IT spending. Now, it appears FDCCI will be formally treated as such, with its 2013 baseline agency inventories categorized and rolled into PortfolioStat. Read more

It’s Not Enough to Close a Few Data Centers… (Nextgov.com, March 7, 2013)
The Office of Management and Budget wants to focus less on simply closing federal data centers and more on making sure the government’s existing data center stock is operating as efficiently as possible…That’s why federal CIO Steven VanRoekel’s office plans to roll its three-year-old data center consolidation initiative into a separate program called PortfolioStat. Read more

Data Center Savings Hard to Track (FCW.com, January 24, 2013)
This article in Federal Computer Week details the testimony of Federal CIO Steven VanRoeckel, David Powner, director of IT management issues at the Government Accountability Office and other government officials at a January 22 hearing on data center consolidation before the House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform. Read more

Behind the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (pkware.com, January 2, 2013)
Two years ago, the Office of Management and Budget launched the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI), which aims to close 40 percent of the federal government's 3,133 data centers by the end of 2015. Central to accomplishing this goal is not only closing data centers, but also making the remaining facilities more efficient. Read more

Optimization Is Key To Federal Data Center Overhaul (Information Week Government, December 17, 2012)
Closing data centers is only half the battle in the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative. The other equally important challenge is overhauling the data centers that remain to handle heavier workloads, and do so more efficiently and at lower cost than today's facilities. Read more

Forman: FDCCI cost savings are 'smoke and mirrors' (FCW.com, November 29, 2012)
In this article, published in late 2012, Mark Forman, former administrator for e-government and IT at OMB, says that the projected savings from data center consolidation are "smoke and mirrors" unless federal agencies also "consolidate away the complexity" of client/server applications and offers guidance on what agencies need to do to realize those savings. Read more

DOD on target with data center consolidation (FCW.com, November 28, 2012)
One of every 13 Defense Department data centers has been closed under the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative, and the Pentagon has bigger ambitions -- but the cost savings so far are difficult to pinpoint.... Read more

U.S. Government Closes 64 More Data Centers (Data Center Knowledge, November 27, 2012)
The closures are part of the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI), a lynchpin of the Obama administration's effort to save taxpayer funds by streamlining government IT operations. With President Barack Obama winning re-election, the FDCCI is expected to roll ahead… Read more

As agency data centers close, measurement tools take center stage (GCN.com, November 26, 2012)
To help monitor these goals, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI), launched in 2010, will be integrated more closely with PortfolioStat, a program introduced in March to help scrutinize an agency’s entire IT portfolio with an eye toward eliminating duplicative IT services. Read more

Data center savings hard to predict (FCW.com, November 19, 2012)
Federal agencies are on pace to meet data center consolidation requirements set forth by the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative, but incomplete plans and cost estimate information may thwart plans to achieve the initiative’s promised cost savings. Read more

Budget cuts threaten data center consolidation (FCW.com, October 3, 2012)
Although the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative promises to save the government billions of dollars in the long run, short-term problems that include possible budget cuts and inadequate information on agency operations could get in the way of meeting the goal to shut down or consolidate 1,186 data centers by 2015. Read more

Data Center Consolidation Allows Agencies to Address the Digital Government Strategy (Signal Magazine, September 14, 2012)
The Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) is playing a role in fostering collaboration between agencies. DoD and civilian agencies are working together to examine new ways to leverage available resources and formulate cost-effective technology strategies. Read more

Progress in Federal Data Center Consolidation (The Data Center Journal, September 6, 2012)
Since the inception of the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) in early 2010 under then Federal CIO Vivek Kundra, The Data Center Journal has covered the progress of this initiative with a due amount of skepticism. Although some progress has been made—likely despite resistance at the agency level—the project still faces fundamental barriers to success. Read more

Why do so few fed execs get Cloud-First and Datacenter Consolidation? (Government Health IT, August 6, 2012)
On the crest of that next wave are the government's Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) and Cloud-First policy - both of which shine a light on the chasm between CIO and agency head. Read more

Cybersecurity Bill on Life Support (NextGov.com, August 2012)
The Senate appears to be open to reviving a cybersecurity bill that failed to advance in late July. The bill included an amendment to improve and speed agency efforts to comply with FDCCI. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who changed his vote in a procedural move that will allow him to bring the bill back to the floor at a later time, has indicated that if both sides can agree on a “finite” number of relevant amendments, the bill could be brought back to the floor when Congress returns in September. Read more

18 months later, 25-point plan language vastly different (Fierce Government IT, June 11, 2012)
At the 18-month mark of the OMB’s 25-point plan to reform federal information technology, progress made is unknown and official updates have been vague. This article notes that the last concrete update, made in April 2011 by then-Federal CIO Vivek Kundra, declared seven items complete, five on track, and two behind schedule. In his June 7, 2012, blog post, current Federal CIO Steven Van VanRoekel did not itemize the government’s performance record but described its shared services, cloud services and data center consolidation efforts as “extremely successful.” Read more

VanRoekel: 25-point plan was about 'shocking the system' (Fierce Government, May 29, 2012)
Federal CIO Steven Van Roekel describes the 25-point plan as having served as a tactical change designed to change mindsets and stir people up. Although the OMB is declaring victory on some of the points, the GAO is reporting that not all milestones have been met and that additional work must be done on getting contractual help with modular development. Read more

Tougher Road Ahead for Fed Data Center Consolidation (GCN, May 18, 2012)
Whatever you call it, the relatively easy phase of the massive Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) is over. Many departments and agencies have rid themselves of the most obvious efficiency offenders: small data centers, facilities previously marked for closure and IT resources deemed surplus to mission requirements. Read more

DOD discovers IT consolidation best practices (Federal Computer Week, May 11, 2012)
New IT investments have played a direct role in the Defense Department attaining a projected $60 billion in operational efficiencies through 2017 — from streamlined business processes and procurement to consolidated IT systems and staff support. Those efforts will be good practice if more drastic budget cuts are handed down. Read more

196 federal data centers to be shuttered in fiscal 2013 (Fierce Government IT, May 5, 2012)
The federal government plans to close 196 data centers in fiscal 2013 according to newly-released figures posted May 11 to data.gov by the General Services Administration's federal data center consolidation initiative program management office. Read more

Navy calls for industry help in data center consolidation (Federal Computer Week, April 20, 2012)
There are 150 data centers currently in the Navy that need consolidated. Many of its offices and departments want to hang onto their data— but the Navy also wants to become more efficient in how it manages its IT assets, said Janice Haith, the Navy's director of assessments and compliance. Read more

Bumps Ahead For Feds' Data-Center Consolidation (Network Computing. March 6, 2012)
While the federal government has mandated that nearly 40% (more than 800) of its data centers be consolidated by 2015, the results of at least two recent studies indicate several concerns about the implications of the consolidation. Federal CIOs need to consolidate effectively without compromising data center management by embracing server virtualization, shifting to a "cloud-first" policy and through modular computing. Read more

Data on Government Data Center Closings Remains Spotty (AOL Government January 26, 2012)
The latest data table at Data.gov featuring an interactive snapshot of the government's progress in consolidating data centers is nice to look at ("eye candy" as some might say). But there are two big problems with it: First, it is not real data that can be copied directly into a spreadsheet and reused (try highlighting it and copying to a spreadsheet - it fails); and Second, when you do download the spreadsheet from the Socrata interface it has to be reformatted to map the data. Read more

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Radio

05-01-12
Tom Deierlien, founder/CEO of ThunderCat Technologies, discusses data center consolidation and other issues affecting federal IT leaders, pertinent case studies and FDCCIConnect.com as a useful tool on 1500 AM Federal News Radio’s show Federal Tech Talk.

FDCCI Watch

FDCCI Watch consisted of a series of topical FDCCI-related radio briefings written by journalists at WTOP FM 103.5, Washington's only all-news radio station.

03-19-12
The federal government will continue its data center consolidation plans under new CTO Todd Park, replacing Aneesh Chopra.

03-12-12
The Department of Interior issued an RFI for ideas and best practices in moving its 70,000 employees to a new data and applications hosting model.

03-06-12
Canada announces that Shared Services Canada will be the country’s sole IT provider, and will slash 300 data centers down to 20 and combine 100 email systems into one.

02-28-12
The Federal Data Center consolidation task force wants to create a data center marketplace designed to let agencies leverage unused capacity.

02-20-12
President Obama’s 2013 budget proposal provides $79 billion for IT spending, down 1.2 percent from last year.

02-13-12
Introducing FDCCIConnect.com, an online community that helps agencies navigate the six phases of the FDCCI mandate.

02-07-12
Virtualization could save federal agencies $30 billion by 2015 a study by MeriTalk shows.