Thankfully, IT leaders can turn to trusted third-party partners to help them map out and take the necessary steps toward zero trust. CDW’s recent acquisition of Focal Point Data Risk means that CDW•G can now offer federal agencies enhanced identity management solutions, a key component of zero trust.
Government agencies often are excellent at purchasing technology but may not have the expertise on staff to integrate those elements into a cohesive system. Many agencies may find that, as they work to implement zero trust, they need to work with an outside integrator to be the manager and orchestrator of the different technology elements needed for aspects such as network access control, identity management and endpoint security.
EXPLORE: Create a zero-trust environment among users as well as on your network.
Ensuring Agencies Have the Right Resources for Modernization
Another key trend to watch for next year is workforce planning, a topic that often can fly under the radar.
One of the major challenges that program offices at agencies are facing is that, as agencies bring workers back into offices and make hybrid work a long-term reality, many are finding gaps in staff.
This is particularly acute with technology procurement roles, an area in which there have been retirements and staff transitions that have led to resource allocation gaps. This can have ripple effects as program offices seek to get technology requirements into procurement offices. However, limited staffing can lead to bottlenecks in procuring and purchasing the needed technology, for everything from zero trust to network modernization, hybrid work and beyond.
This may lead more agencies to work more closely with systems integrators and technology partners if they do not have enough staff internally or cannot fill their vacant roles in a timely fashion.
It seems clear that 2022 will be an important year for federal IT leaders as they seek to execute on zero trust, make hybrid work more sustainable over the long term, modernize their networks and continue to innovate. It’s also clear that they will need strong and trusted technology partners to help them along the way.
This article is part of FedTech’s CapITal blog series. Please join the discussion on Twitter by using the #FedIT hashtag.