FAIRFAX, Va., April 27, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With the advent of the Office of American Innovation, there is renewed interest in innovation in government. Hypothetically, if the government follows the private sector's lead, it could deliver better services in modern ways while saving a lot of money. At the fourth annual Igniting Innovation Showcase and Awards, on April 26th at the Reagan Center, ACT-IAC showcased thirty of the best innovations in government and industry demonstrating that innovation in government is already alive and well.
These innovations were competitively selected from 116 nominations from federal, state and local governments, private companies, and government-private partnerships across the country. The innovations ranged from adopting new technology, to repurposing and reusing existing technology, to re-engineering business processes to improve services to citizens and government program operations.
DHS U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), in partnership with Excella Consulting and the National Technical Information Service, won this year's Igniting Innovation Award for their Verification Program that is used by the private sector, and federal and state governments to determine eligibility for government benefits and to enable work authorizations for individuals across the country. The system is being rapidly modernized using agile, DevOps, cloud services, and data science best practices to regularly deliver new features that make it easier for thousands of individuals to start jobs and obtain public benefits and credentials. USCIS also won last year's Igniting Innovation award for their myUSCIS program.
USAID won the award for the innovation with the greatest impact for their Global Innovation Exchange, an online platform to connect innovators, funders, and experts working on development innovations around the world.
INADEV Corporation won the award for the most disruptive innovation for the Immersive Multi-Dimensional Experience. This application provides a virtual tour of the World War II Memorial and guides visitors through experiences of people impacted by the war. It engages and informs all age groups through narrative, games, video, audio, stories and images in seven languages and accommodates a broad range of disabilities.
AEGIS.net, Inc. won the award for transforming or extending existing capabilities for the Developer's Integration Lab (DIL), an automated conformance and interoperability test lab. This revolutionary cloud-based system facilitates secure, reliable electronic data exchange in accordance with national standards while protecting information integrity and confidentiality.
USDA Food and Nutrition Service won the award for the innovation with the greatest potential to enhance services to citizens with its Web-Based Prototype Application for School Meals. This application makes it easier to apply for reduced or free lunches for millions of children while streamlining the process and increasing the integrity of the program.
Over the last four years, ACT-IAC received several hundred nominations showing that governments at all levels across the country, in partnership with private sector companies, are working hard to innovate. If we can sustain and grow those efforts, then all Americans stand to benefit from the promise of innovation.
American Council for Technology-Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC)
The American Council for Technology (ACT) is a non-profit educational organization established to improve government's service delivery and operational performance through the effective and innovative application of technology. ACT-IAC provides a unique, objective and trusted collaborative forum where government and industry executives are working as partners to address critical issues, apply best practices and pioneer innovative solutions. ACT-IAC also provides high-quality learning and educational opportunities to improve the knowledge and expertise of the government workforce – both public and private. Further information about ACT-IAC can be found at www.actiac.org.
SOURCE American Council for Technology
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