9/11 Changed How the U.S. Buys IT
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title=Three Stakeholders}
Cellucci works with the
private sector and points out that his needs and wants have three separate
stakeholders: the DHS, the federal government at large and private
industry-especially critical infrastructure owners and operators. Once companies
know there's a market that's much larger than just the DHS, they respond
quickly with technology solutions, he said.
"Technology is a force
multiplier," Cellucci explained. "Because of this market opportunity, we are
bombarded by high-tech firms that want to help."
Once the required
technologies are developed, DHS can buy them directly from vendors. So can the
rest of government and private industry with similar needs, Cellucci noted,
after the technologies' value has been demonstrated by their use at DHS.
"To get the interest of the
private sector, we need to leverage the fact that we have large potential
markets," Cellucci said. "Now we share it across government. It's necessary
with the reduction of budgets." He noted that by driving interest in developing
products for use by the DHS and similar markets, most development takes place
without the government having to fund it.
Cellucci added that the DHS
has developed a repository that allows people in the department to discover
where there are unsatisfied needs and wants. Then the department can scour the
market to see if anyone has technology that meets those needs.
Wayne Rash is a Senior Analyst for eWEEK Labs and runs the magazineÃÃÃs Washington Bureau. Prior to joining eWEEK as a Senior Writer on wireless technology, he was a Senior Contributing Editor and previously a Senior Analyst in the InfoWorld Test Center. He was also a reviewer for Federal Computer Week and Information Security Magazine. Previously, he ran the reviews and events departments at CMP's InternetWeek.He is a retired naval officer, a former principal at American Management Systems and a long-time columnist for Byte Magazine. He is a regular contributor to Plane & Pilot Magazine and The Washington Post.
