Safe at Home: How 3 Federal Agencies Made the Pivot to Remote Work

The Defense Intelligence Agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Science Foundation were among the agencies that sent employees home to work as the COVID-19 pandemic expanded. Learn how they coped with the challenges of a remote workforce, and find out what technology they used to keep their missions running.

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• The VA Provides Health Care Via Smartphones
• Robotic Process Automation Does the Work at the Defense Logistics Agency
• Smart Building Technology Saves State Department Time and Money
• Army Ramps Up Augmented Reality Training with COTS-Inspired Gear
• National Park Service Relies on Webcams to Attract Far-Flung Nature Fans
• Census Bureau Relied on Tech to Make the 2020 Count Happen
• Drones Aid NOAA Scientists with Hurricane Tracking and Animal Monitoring
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory Prepares for Its Exascale Supercomputer
• NIST Aims a Camera at the Mechanics of Fire

Dorothy Aronson, CIO, National Science Foundation

David Bottom, CIO, Securities and Exchange Commission

Jack Gumtow, CIO, Defense Intelligence Agency

• Even agencies whose employees used telework on a regular basis found themselves challenged by the rapid scaling-up needed for mass remote work.
• VPNs were essential to maintain cybersecurity; team collaboration tools and extra bandwidth became critical needs as well.
• Despite the chaos of the first few weeks, agencies soon found that telework was easier to maintain than expected.