PEO Pulse - April 17, 2020

►► PEO PULSE - April 17, 2020 

The "PEO Pulse" is a weekly digest of relevant news, recent PEO EIS events and updates to keep our workforce informed.   

►► UPCOMING EVENTS 

• April 23 - DCO Cyber Talks 

• May 13 - PEO EIS Newcomers Brief  

• May 21 - PEO EIS Lunch and Learn 

• May 27 - PEO Change of Charter Ceremony 

►► AROUND EIS 

APP FACILITATES PAY, PROMOTIONS TRACKING 

(FEDweek, April 10) Army National Guard members can now track their promotions, pay and benefits using their smartphones. Military.com reported last month that the National Guard personnel office has transitioned 331,000 members in each state and four territories to the new Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army. 

8 KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM GFIM INDUSTRY DAY 

PEO EIS hosted its very first virtual industry day on March 20 to acquire industry feedback about an Army plan to award at least three Other Transaction Authority (OTA) prototypes demonstrating business processes that support deploy-to-redeploy and retrograde (D2RR) of materiel.  

CHESS, ACC-RI & ISEC HOST ADMC-3 POST AWARD KICK-OFF MEETING 

Computer Hardware Enterprise Software and Solutions (CHESS), in collaboration with Army Contracting Command – Rock Island (ACC-RI) and Information Systems Engineering Command (ISEC) hosted the Army Desktop and Mobile Computing – 3 (ADMC-3) post award kick-off meeting with the ten recently awarded vendors via teleconference on April 8, 2020. 

►► ARMY 

ARMY’S ‘INNOVATION COMBINE’ LOOKING FOR SCALABLE POWER, WEIGHT REDUCTION TECHNOLOGIES (Inside Defense, Apr. 16, Ashley Tressel)

Army Futures Command is hosting a new competition for prototype projects to improve the service's platforms, weapon systems and support systems, called the Innovation Combine.  

20 PERCENT OF TROOPS WITH CORONAVIRUS HAVE RECOVERED 

(Military Times, Apr. 16, Meghann Myers) On the day that U.S. Forces Korea announced that the first service member diagnosed with COVID-19 — a 23-year-old soldier stationed at Camp Carroll, South Korea — the latest Defense Department numbers show that about 20 percent of the nearly 3,000 troops diagnosed so far have recovered.  

COVID-19: ARMY RAMPS UP TESTING, VACCINE R&D  

(Breaking Defense, Apr. 16, Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.) The Army is ramping up its response to the COVID-19 coronavirus within its ranks and across the nation as the pandemic spreads. 

ARMY LAUNCHES ‘SHARK TANK’ STYLE COMPETITION FOR VENTILATOR DESIGNS, SUCCESSFUL IDEAS GET $100,000  

(CNBC, Apr. 16, Amanda Macias) The U.S. Army is offering an initial investment of $100,000 to innovators with plans to rapidly develop ventilators amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

SOLDIERS WHO BUILT SEATTLE FIELD HOSPITAL WILL SOON GET NEW MISSION  

(Military.com, Apr. 16, Matthew Cox) The Army's chief of staff today said the field hospitals sent to support the coronavirus response in Seattle, Washington are now on a 48-hour prepare-to-deploy order awaiting their next mission. 

TWO US SOLDIERS WITH COVID-19 'UP AND WALKING AROUND' AFTER TAKING EBOLA DRUG 

(Military.com, Apr. 15, Matthew Cox) U.S. Army medical officials say they have successfully treated two soldiers diagnosed with the novel coronavirus, using an experimental antiviral drug designed to treat pathogens such as Ebola. 

MONTH OF THE MILITARY CHILD OFFERS VIRTUAL ACTIVITIES AS ARMY CHILD AND YOUTH SERVICES CELEBRATES 40 YEARS  

(Army.mil, Apr. 14, Susan A. Merkner) Even in a time of social distancing, the Army’s observance of Month of the Military Child in April offers opportunities for celebrating the youngest members of the military family and acknowledging the adults who work with them. 

ARMY LAB DEVELOPING COVID-19 TEST FOR PEOPLE WITHOUT SYMPTOMS, KEY TO ‘NORMAL’ RETURN 

(McClatchy, Apr. 13, Tara Copp and Michael Wilner) Researchers at the Army’s premiere infectious diseases lab are working on a more sensitive test that could detect the coronavirus in people who have no symptoms – a critical step in getting the nation back to “a new sense of normal,” the lab’s chief viral expert told McClatchy. 

WATCHDOG FINDS THE PENTAGON IS BEHIND ON SEVERAL CYBERSECURITY INITIATIVES  

(Fifth Domain, Apr. 13, Andrew Eversden) The Department of Defense is behind on several internal cybersecurity initiatives, years after some were expected to be completed, Congress’ watchdog agency has found.  

►► FEDERAL 

HOW DOD EXPANDED ITS NETWORKS TO BEAT THE TELEWORK SPIKE  

(C4ISRNET, Apr. 16, Andrew Eversden) Before the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus, the Navy regularly had 100,000 remote users on its network. 

DOD, ODNI SIGN ‘PERMISSION SLIPS’ TO KEEP CONTRACTORS VIABLE THROUGH THE PANDEMIC  

(Federal News Network, Apr. 14) The memos are coming fast and furious. Like the movies with a similar name, many times the sequels are just as good as or better than the original. 

DOD MUST IDENTIFY ITS ‘CROWN JEWELS’ IN PREPARATION FOR FISCAL UNCERTAINTY  

(Defense News, Apr. 15, Todd Harrison) As the attention of Congress and senior leaders in the Department of Defense are rightly focused on mitigating the coronavirus pandemic, it is not too soon to begin planning for how the nation and the DoD can recover from this crisis. 

The Pentagon Hasn't Fixed Basic Cybersecurity Blind Spots  

(WIRED, Apr. 14, Lily Hay Newman) The United States federal government isn't known for robust cybersecurity. Even the Department of Defense has its share of known vulnerabilities. 

‘STEM CORPS’ LEGISLATION WOULD FILL DOD’S GAPS IN TECH TALENT  

(FEDSCOOP, Apr. 14, Jackson Barnett) A new bipartisan bill would create a stream of STEM talent for the Department of Defense by offering tuition assistance in exchange for service in the department. 

MILITARY 'SPEAR PHISHING' SCAMS SURGE AS PENTAGON SHIFTS TO TELEWORK  

(Military.com, Apr. 13, Richard Sisk) A surge in "spear phishing' scams has caused trouble for the military as many Defense Department personnel switch to telework, DoD cyber security officials said Monday. 

THE HISTORY OF THE DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR COVID-19  

(War on the Rocks, Apr. 13, Dan Else) Before it has run its course, the COVID-19 pandemic will likely claim at least 50,000 American lives, with the potential to kill as many as 140,000 in the space of a few months. 

THE DANGERS OF TRIMMING THE POST-CORONAVIRUS DEFENSE BUDGET  

(The National Interest, Apr. 12, Thomas Spoehr) If America ever chooses to tackle this debt problem, then constraining growth in defense spending and finding new Pentagon efficiencies should be part of the overall solution. 

►► WORKFORCE 

JEFF JOO IS A JACK OF ALL TRADES AND MASTER OF ONE 

Jeff Joo, the program officer for Satellite Terminal Systems, began supporting the Army in 1998 as a student trainee pursuing a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Born in South Korea, his family moved to New Jersey when Joo was five-years old. When not working, Joo enjoys spending time with his family, jogging and playing ultimate frisbee. He answered 10 questions about his career and life. 

AWARDS: 

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR THE WORKFORCE RECRUITMENT PROGRAM AWARDS  

S: 30 APR 2020.  

***FOR ALL AWARDS QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT: tobias.l.smith.civ@mail.mil 

This message contains curated content from external sources, and does not indicate PEO EIS endorsement of the views or ideas expressed therein.