The GovNavigators Show

Adam
  • 5.0 (17)
  • GOVERNMENT
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Welcome, everyone, to the The GovNavigators Show - a government focused show that won’t make you seasick. We hope to enlighten and enliven your week with news and insightful, entertaining guests all on the topic of government management.Check out more at www.govnavigators.com 

  1. 5D AGO

    Wynn Coggins on Leading Through Crisis, Chaos, and Change

    This week on The GovNavigators Show, Robert and Adam welcome Wynn Coggins, former Acting Secretary of Commerce and now Chief Growth Officer at Management Science and Innovation, for a candid conversation on leadership forged through crisis, transition, and 35 years of federal service. Wynn shares the lessons she's carried from her early days as a patent examiner through navigating COVID at the Department of Commerce, serving as Acting Deputy Secretary, and landing in the private sector at Deloitte before her current role. The throughline: surround yourself with people who challenge you, park your ego at the door, and build a culture where failing fast is a feature, not a flaw. Robert and Adam also cover the week's big news: the introduction of the Federal Loan System Modernization Act of 2026, a bill that would finally bring a single platform to manage the government's sprawling loan portfolio, and the escalating standoff between the Department of Defense and Anthropic, which has now prompted the White House to direct agencies to cancel contracts with the AI company. Plus: Microsoft's major takedown of a global phishing operation responsible for 30 million fraudulent emails a month. Show Notes: Federal Loan System Modernization Act of 2026Check out the The Lending Brief Podcast's new homeWhat's on the GovNavigators' Radar: Mar 12, 2026 AFCEA NOVA Naval IT DayMar 17, 2026 AGA Technology and Transformation SummitApr 22, 2026 ACT-IAC Emerging Tech Demo Day (rescheduled from March 18)

    31 min

  2. MAR 2

    Stuck in Pilot Mode: Deep Grewal on the Federal AI Readiness Gap and the Data Problem No One Wants to Fix

    This week on The GovNavigators Show, Robert Shea and Adam Hughes sit down with Deep Grewal, Vice President of Public Sector at MinIO, to unpack the findings of a new survey on the federal government’s AI readiness, and why so many agencies are still stuck in the pilot phase. While AI ambition is everywhere, Deep explains that the real bottleneck is in data management. From lineage and governance to infrastructure, portability, and total cost of ownership, the conversation makes the case that the unglamorous foundational work will determine which agencies actually scale AI and which remain in perpetual experimentation. They dig into the tension between cloud-first and cloud-smart, the rise of hybrid and sovereign architectures, the GPU and storage crunch, and why AI must become a mission-wide capability rather than a bolt-on “innovation project.” Deep also lays out a practical checklist for moving to enterprise AI: get your data house in order, modernize infrastructure, upskill the workforce, establish governance, and prove the ROI. If you’re trying to move from AI pilots to real production, this episode is your roadmap.  Show Notes: MinIO's Federal AI Readiness GapAnthropic's stand-offOne man's big bet against DOGEWhat's on the GovNavigators' Radar: Mar 4, 2026 Alliance for Digital Innovation’s Understanding OneGov: Discussions with GSA LeadershipMar 5, 2026 The MUST ATTEND Driving Government Efficiency SummitMar 11, 2026  Data Foundation event on Treasury’s Do Not PayMar 19, 2026  RSM Webinar: AI Governance and Responsible Adoption in Government

    27 min

  3. FEB 23

    The Oracle of Identity: Jordan Burris on Industrialized Fraud and the Government’s Daytona Moment

    This special episode of The GovNavigators Show features a live conversation with Socure’s Jordan Burris, former chief of staff to the Federal CIO, recorded at the Government Executive Federal Technology Priorities Conference. Jordan lays out a stark warning: modern fraud is not a series of isolated schemes, it’s an industrialized, AI-enabled ecosystem operating at global scale. He explains how adversaries are using the same large language models, automation, and data-sharing techniques as legitimate organizations to defeat traditional identity controls in days instead of months, creating what he calls a “zero-day” environment for fraud. The discussion explores why long-standing federal fraud defenses are being outpaced, how commercial sectors have pulled ahead, and what agencies can do now to measure risk, modernize verification, and collaborate across silos. With hundreds of billions of dollars at stake each year, Jordan argues the government must move faster, test new approaches, and learn from industries already fighting these threats in real time. If you care about improper payments, digital service delivery, customer experience, or cybersecurity, this is a roadmap for how identity has become the front line. Show Notes: USA Today's story on Socure's age verification workSupreme Court rules against the administration's tariffsICYMI: upcoming changes to 8(a)What's on the GovNavigators' Radar: Feb 24, 2026: Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Hearing on Security ClearancesState of the Union AddressMar 4, 2026: Alliance for Digital Innovation’s Understanding OneGov: Discussions with GSA LeadershipMar 5, 2026: Driving Government Efficiency Summit

    24 min

  4. FEB 16

    President’s Day Pop-Up: Shutdown Impacts, SBA 8(a) Cuts, and a $23 Trillion Reality Check

    In this special President’s Day pop-up episode, the GovNavigators break down a fast-moving week in federal management and policy. They unpack the latest partial shutdown and what it really means for DHS employees, travelers, and the long-term outlook for TSA, along with the state of negotiations between the White House and Congress. The conversation turns to the Congressional Budget Office’s new long-term deficit projection, the Small Business Administration’s termination of more than 150 8(a) contracts and what it signals for the federal contracting community, and a notable Washington Post release of a searchable database of federal AI use cases, and what it says about the government’s progress (and remaining challenges) in making data usable. Enjoy the long weekend, folks! Show Notes: Robert, there are a total of four presidents with alliterative names, they are:  Woodrow Wilson (28th President)Calvin Coolidge (30th President)Herbert Hoover (31st President)Ronald Reagan (40th President)

    6 min

  5. FEB 9

    Back to School with Mike Wetklow

    This week, the GovNavigators are joined by Mike Wetklow, former Chief Risk Officer at the IRS and longtime federal financial leader, to kick off a new series on the pod, introducing you all to the illustrious members of the GovNavigators Network. Mike reflects on his career across DHS, NSF, OMB, and IRS, his decision to return to school mid-career to study data analytics, and his current work preparing the next generation of public servants at George Mason University. The conversation explores how AI, data science, and emerging technologies are reshaping risk management and financial oversight, and why government’s real challenge may be learning to oversee technology that increasingly does the work itself. In the news, Robert and Adam break down a brief partial shutdown, ongoing DHS funding uncertainty, and GAO’s latest report on federal shared services. They unpack why progress remains slow, what leadership commitment is missing, and why agencies continue to struggle to stop paying for duplicative systems. The episode also covers the administration’s move to reclassify parts of the federal workforce, revisiting the spirit of Schedule F, and a rare bipartisan moment out of the House Oversight Committee that raises cautious questions about the future of good-government reforms. Show Notes: Learn more about the GovNavigators NetworkGAO report on Federal Shared ServicesOPM Federal Workforce Reclassification RuleWhat's on the GovNavigators' Radar: Feb 10-12: AFCEA WestFeb 11: PSC Law Enforcement ConferenceFeb 18-19: AGA National Leadership TrainingMar 5: Government Efficiency Summit

    28 min
  6. The Lending Brief Podcast: Bill Webner on Why Federal Lending Needs a Single, Modern Platform

    FEB 4

    The Lending Brief Podcast: Bill Webner on Why Federal Lending Needs a Single, Modern Platform

    In this episode of The Lending Brief  (sponsored by Allocore), Bill Webner, CEO of Allocore, joins the podcast to break down why federal lending remains one of government’s most mission-critical—but technologically neglected—functions, and what it will take to modernize it at scale. Drawing on his career spanning Freddie Mac, Booz Allen, Capgemini, and now Allocore, Webner explains how legacy, fragmented loan systems slow disbursements, increase fraud risk, and drive unnecessary operating costs across more than 175 federal credit programs. He contrasts the federal approach with modern commercial banking platforms, where speed and accountability are the norm, not the exception. The conversation explores lessons from SBA’s pandemic-era lending programs, why emergency conditions often catalyze modernization, and how a sanctioned, shared lending platform could dramatically improve speed to disbursement, borrower experience, and fraud prevention across government. Webner also discusses why federal lending modernization is uniquely solvable, how it mirrors past shared-services efforts like payroll and travel, and why getting this right has an outsized impact on the broader economy. Want more from The Lending Brief? Check out The Lending Brief Newsletter.

    22 min

  7. FEB 2

    Leadership Across the Pentagon and Beyond: A Conversation with Venice Goodwine

    This week on The GovNavigators Show, Robert and Adam are joined by Venice Goodwine, former CIO of the Department of the Air Force and current CIO and Product Owner at Arlo Solutions, for a candid conversation about leadership, culture, and change across government.  Venice reflects on a remarkable career spanning more than three decades of active-duty and reserve service, senior executive roles at the Department of Agriculture and the Air Force, and hands-on leadership across nearly every military service. She shares how navigating wildly different organizational cultures shaped her leadership style, why mission understanding matters more than titles, and what it really takes to modernize enterprise IT at scale. The discussion also dives into major accomplishments, including IT-as-a-service transformations, cybersecurity improvements, early GenAI experimentation inside DoD, and lessons learned from retiring (twice!) and choosing to keep contributing. Venice closes with advice for today’s public servants navigating uncertainty, efficiency mandates, and cultural resistance, emphasizing curiosity, coalition-building, and keeping the end mission in mind. Show Notes: H.R.7148: Consolidated Appropriations ActReform For ResultsWhat's on the GovNavigators' Radar: Feb 3: ITI's The Intersect 2026 Feb 5: Shared Services Leadership Coalition Government Efficiency Roundtable

    30 min

  8. JAN 26

    Doug Criscitello on Fixing Federal Lending from the Ground Up

    This week on The GovNavigators Show, Robert and Adam are joined by Doug Criscitello, newly named Executive Director of the Center for U.S. Lending, to unpack what’s next for federal credit programs, and why modernization can’t wait. Doug outlines the Center’s mission to improve how Americans access the federal government’s $5 trillion loan portfolio, from student loans and housing to small business and infrastructure finance. Additionally, we learn how the Center plans to convene agencies, Congress, lenders, and contractors, and why improving program design and performance measurement is just as important as upgrading technology. It’s a wide-ranging discussion on what it will take to make federal lending more effective, more secure, and more user-centered, without making it “exciting for the wrong reasons.” Show Notes: Appropriations ProgressTechnology Modernization Fund (TMF)GAO's Federal Debt AuditWhat's on the GovNavigator's Radar: Jan 27: CMS Industry Day Jan 26-28: National Small Business Conference

    28 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
17 Ratings

About

Welcome, everyone, to the The GovNavigators Show - a government focused show that won’t make you seasick. We hope to enlighten and enliven your week with news and insightful, entertaining guests all on the topic of government management.Check out more at www.govnavigators.com 

Information

  • Creator
    Adam
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    155
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The GovNavigators Show
  • Show Website
    The GovNavigators Show

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