Recap: NASCIO 2014
State chief information officers (CIOs) from around the nation gathered in Nashville, Tennessee, recently to discuss breaking
trends in IT that will impact their public sector operations. From the Internet of Things (IoT) to collaboration, topics focused
on key issues facing state governments in the age of convergence. And Cisco was there.
The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) Annual Conference has just come to a close in Nashville,
Tennessee. This year’s event “Raising the Bar . . . What’s Next?” was held September 28–October 1, 2014, at the Omni
Nashville Hotel and explored the age of convergence in state IT.
Cisco, the leader in Internet of Everything (IoE) technologies, served as Communication Sponsor for the conference, while
Cisco senior vice president of IoT sales Chris White, led a break-out session. The session, entitled “The Internet of Everything:
Smart Government,” focused on IoE’s real impacts on state governments including the needed shift from legacy infrastructure,
opportunities for smart buildings and transportation, and planning for an IoE future.
The annual conference keynote speech, “The Cautionary Side of Big Data,” was presented by American sociobiologist Rebecca
Costa. According to Costa, IT analysts often speak about the four Vs of data: velocity, volume, variety, and veracity. But with
the explosion in data (we are now producing as much data every 48 hours as was produced from the dawn of mankind to
the year 2003), the question needs to be asked, just how much information can a human organism discern or utilize? During
her presentation, Costa promoted her belief that the true challenge for IT lies in our biological limitations and revealed three
human symptoms that seem to appear when the complexity of data, foundational systems, and processes exceed the cognitive
capabilities we as humans currently have. In addition, Costa argued that we are now leaving the information age and entering the
technolithic era where analytics and discoveries in neuroscience will pave the way for computer-assisted decision making that
will impact our lives daily.
The 2014 NASCIO Annual Conference also included a leadership keynote address delivered by Army Ranger Keni Thomas.
Thomas was deployed in Mogadishu, Somalia, with the U.S. Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion in the summer of 1993. During his
deployment, he was involved in the 18-hour firefight that was later recounted in the highly successful book and movie Blackhawk
Down. During his discussion on leadership, Thomas related that it should never be about the rank or position you hold. But about
the example you set.
Next year’s NASCIO Annual Conference will be held October 11–14, 2015, in Salt Lake City, Utah. For more information, visit
The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO). To learn more about the role convergence plays in
the IoE, see the new interactive convergence white paper, Are You Ready for the Future of IT? and browse through Cisco’s
Convergence E-book. For up-to-date information about trends in convergence, join our ongoing conversations on Twitter at
#FutureOfIT and #InternetOfEverything.
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