CHARLESTON, S.C. (April 16, 2012) – On April 2, Secure Mission Solutions’ Navy Medicine ESOC team hosted its first Leadership Conference, bringing together the program’s operational leaders to develop a strategic roadmap for the near future.

The goal of the summit was to bring the leadership team together to develop a six month action plan to improve communications and processes, identify service gaps, and ultimately improve the quality of service provided to the Navy Medicine Enterprise.  In addition to the Director and Team Leads that make up the ESOC leadership team, an additional seven ESOC employees and users attended the summit as well.

“The conference created a level of leadership the ESOC has never seen before.  The ESOC plans to keep it going by hosting a conference every six months with the second conference scheduled for November 2012,” said Ashlee Bowen, Deputy Program Manager.

During the event, the leadership team reviewed the results of a recent Enterprise user survey which according to Mike Carter, Technical Project Manager, “provided honest feedback from the enterprise while highlighting where processes could be strengthened and areas where processes need to be developed.” 

In addition to the discussions, the Engineering Services Modernization (ESM) Project Lead and the Site Administrator at the Navy Hospital, Charleston, were guest speakers at the event, providing their unique perspectives and analysis on the current operational state of the ESOC and potential considerations for future planning. Topics included the users experience within the ESOC framework as well as the ESM’s development of the next generation of Navy Medicine architecture which will be sustained by the ESOC upon completion.

“The conference brought everyone together for collaboration and discussion.  The successful results of the conference demonstrated that the ESOC is working to continuously improve its services,” said Carter.

Since the inception of the ESOC in 2005, Secure Mission Solutions has been providing information technology (IT) services and solutions to the Navy Medicine Enterprise to support Medical Treatment Facilities ranging from hospitals, dental offices, and medical centers aboard Navy ships.  All users rely on the ESOC network for internet service, email, and collaboration through the Navy Medicine SharePoint site.

ESOC, with the help of Secure Mission Solutions engineers, provides the following core services to the Navy Medicine Enterprise: Messaging; Web Services; Active Directory; Application Support; Help Desk Hosting; Remedy Incident Management; and Boundary Protection.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success. Headquartered in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Fairfax, Va.; Chesapeake, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

Contact
Kelly Russ, Business Development
843.308.4509

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LAS VEGAS (March 20, 2012) - In late February, 12 Secure Mission Solutions engineers, from the Cyber Assurance Business Unit attended and participated in the Navy Days Information Management/Information Technology Training Symposium and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Conference and Exhibition.  Several of the Secure Mission Solutions team made presentations to the assembled leaders of the military medical community at this conference, which is widely known as the most comprehensive and authoritative knowledge event in healthcare IT today. 

Secure Mission Solutions personnel support both Navy and Air Force Medicine providing Enterprise Services, Help Desk Services, Air Force Medical System (AFMS) Infrastructure and a myriad of other services.  A number of Secure Mission Solutions employees supporting various groups from Navy Medicine presented healthcare IT briefings at customers’ request. 

Rob Lingberg, EIA Enterprise Cyber Incident Response & Analysis Support Functional Lead, presented four times during the conference to audiences of Air Force and Navy Information Management and Assurance personnel.  His first presentation, “Cyber Security Threats and Analysis: Existing and Emerging,” provided in-depth discussion and situational awareness of current network security threats.  Lindberg’s second presentation, “IA Mitigation Tools, Techniques, Processes,” given twice at the conference, focused on existing and emerging cyber threats and best practices throughout NAVMED.  Lingberg also presented an Operational Workshop titled, “What Should you do When an IA Incident Occurs?,” a walk-through of real-world examples of IA incidents.

Wes Brown, ESM Program Manager, and Paul Simmons, Senior Strategic Engineer, supported SPAWAR leadership during their presentation of the Enterprise Services Modernization (ESM) Program.

Kayann Januchowski, Enterprise Service Operation Center (ESOC) Enterprise Application Support Team Lead, presented and led a focus group on Data at Rest (DAR) rollout in the Navy Medicine Enterprise to an audience of IT Staff from different Naval Medical Facilities, Commanding Officers of Medical Facilities, and Clinicians.  The goal was to get the IT staff from the various installations to discuss the lessons they learned during their deployment and share ideas for future deployments and concerns they may be experiencing with the product.

“There was an excellent turn out and we had some very good feedback on how the different sites have addressed some of the issues they encountered.  It was an excellent focus group,” said Januchowski.

Wayne Chardon, ESOC Senior Engineer, also participated on two panels, serving as the Subject Matter Expert (SME) presenting data on the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application (AHLTA) SP1 Deployment and Desktop Imaging to discuss best practices and lesson learned. 

Our professionals enjoyed keynote speakers discussing topics such as Enterprise Services Modernization, Medical Cell for Enterprises Services Desk & Information Management, Health Data Services, and applying the AFMS Enterprise Architecture, as well as presentations by their Secure Mission Solutions colleagues.

A SPAWAR customer, very pleased with the performance and representations at the conference, sent the following message to Secure Mission Solutions’ Project Manager, Kristen Lemus:  “This year at Service Days, ESOC had a larger, more prevalent presence than ever before. We were asked to prepare briefs and speak in front of people who provide information technology to Army, Navy, and Air Force health providers.  It was a major success. Your teammates’ presentations were well attended, well received, and beautifully delivered. Everywhere I went, people had nothing but great things to say about ESOC and the work you all do. While I’m always proud of you, I have never been more proud than I am at this moment.” 

Another SPAWAR customer said, “Every bit of feedback I received about ESOC’s operations and those of you who had an opportunity to brief during the conference was a resounding positive message.”

The conference as a whole was successful both in the outstanding presentations given by the Secure Mission Solutions personnel as well as the vast knowledge they were able to gain at the over 300 educational sessions available.

“We consider Service Days and HIMSS to be one of the most important conferences of the year. It provides a unique view into the state of DoD Healthcare, Healthcare IT, and a glimpse into the future of Medical Information Systems.  The medical infrastructure complexities and data privacy concerns are real and becoming more demanding each year. Our engineers will apply the training and lessons learned to their mission supporting their customers, and ultimately, the Warfighter,” said Matt Roldan, Vice President of the Cyber Assurance Business Unit.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success. Headquartered in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Fairfax, Va.; Chesapeake, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

Contact
Kelly Russ, Business Development
843.308.4509

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CHARLESTON, S.C. (Feb. 6, 2012) – Secure Mission Solutions continued its tradition of providing help to those in need this past holiday season. For the 2011 Holiday Season, the company’s Charleston team participated in the Charleston’s Youth Development Center’s (CYDC) Holiday Wish List Project and held a canned food drive for the Lowcounty Food Bank.

Almost tripling the support provided last year, Charleston personnel fulfilled the holiday wish lists of 17 children that participate in the CYDC program, an increase of 11 children that were sponsored last year. Since 2010, the Charleston team has been supporting the CYDC through the Holiday Wish List Project as well as the organization of an internal Wii Bowling Tournament in May 2011 that rose over $1000 for the Big Brother/Big Sister Program.

“We were excited to fulfill the holiday wishes of 17 children this year.  Without cooperation and participation across the Charleston office, this would not have been possible,” said Matt Roldan, Vice President Cyber Assurance.

The support of the CYDC was initiated by the Cyber Assurance business unit who sponsored six children during the 2010 holiday season. Realizing the positive impact the donations had on the morale of the CYDC participants and children, the business unit recruited the other organizations and support staff located at the Charleston facility to participate this past season.

“On behalf of the children we serve here at Carolina Youth Development Center, thank you sincerely for the generosity of [the Secure Mission Solutions team]!  Christmas morning was beyond exciting for our children, and we have you all to thank for it,” said Amy Ware, Associate Director of Development, CYDC.

The Lowcountry Food Bank also received 455 pounds of food providing 350 meals for families in the area due to contributions from the Charleston office.

“Secure Mission Solutions is proud of the support we provide the CYDC and the Lowcountry Food Bank.  The hard work and enthusiasm of our employees brightened the holidays for many children and families in the Charleston area,” said Charlie Templeton, Senior Vice President/General Manager Global Security Solutions.

Support of the CYDC and Lowcountry Food Bank is expected to continue in 2012.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success. Headquarted in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Fairfax, Va.; Chesapeake, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

RESTON, Va. (Jan. 3, 2012) - Secure Mission Solutions is pleased to announce the addition of the Corporate Quality Office (CQO), responsible for ensuring continuous process improvement, specifically in the areas of Program Management and Corporate Health and Safety.  Executive Director of Quality Dr. Dennis Perry and Senior Compliance Officer Christopher Cole oversee CQO’s two activities – the Program Management Office (PMO) and the Health and Safety Office (HSO).

“These new offices are critical to the continued development of our culture of quality at Secure Mission Solutions.  This office will ensure our persistent focus on quality and safe work environments, which contributes to the company’s effort at delivering the best possible support to our customers’ vital national security missions, ” said Phil Lacombe, President/COO. 

The PMO’s specific purpose is to improve Secure Mission Solutions’ standard processes and ensure compliance with Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) Maturity Level (ML) – 3.  We achieved CMMI ML-2 compliance in October 2011 and are working toward ML- 3 certification this year.

According to Lacombe, “a primary objective for the PMO is developing and providing a program management training curriculum to help our PMs extend their individual capabilities and support our commitment to quality through effective program management.  We have also asked the PMO to assist with project reviews and monitoring projects to guarantee process execution.”

Secure Mission Solutions also created the HSO. “A safe work environment for ourselves, our customers and visitors is not optional.  It is essential,” said Jon Dorrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer.  The HSO will also help ensure compliance with federal, state and local health and safety regulations, through the delivery of safety training for all Secure Mission Solutions personnel and performance of random safety audits at company facilities.

“These offices will provide the ‘organizational teeth’ to our commitment to quality, safety and program management,” said Perry.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success. Headquartered in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Fairfax, Va.; Chesapeake, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

FAIRFAX, Va. (Dec. 6, 2011) – After several years in the district, the Secure Mission Solutions facility moved to the Willow Oaks Corporate Center in Fairfax, Va., officially opening the doors for business on Dec. 5.

This new facility has many benefits including free covered parking, a well-equipped fitness center, a new Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF), additional square footage providing room for expected growth in years to come, shorter commutes for personnel, ease of access to major highways as well as a closer proximity to the corporate headquarters at the Reston Town Center. 

“My favorite feature of the new facility is that my commute is now shortened by about two hours a day,” said Phil Medell, Critical Asset Protection (CAP) Director, Eastern Region.

The Willow Oaks office is located at the intersection of Arlington Boulevard and Gallows Road, about a mile from Interstate 495, and two exits south of Tyson’s Corner, a central business and shopping area in Northern Virginia. The location’s proximity to Interstate 66, the Dulles Toll Road and Interstate 395 provides additional major thoroughfares to the surrounding areas and airport convenience.

The new facility will house members of the Critical Asset Protection and Cyber and Intelligence Support business units as well as the area’s support staff, compromised primarily of Secure Mission Solutions contracts and finance personnel. Prior to moving, personnel commuted to the district office, which was the headquarters of legacy Sim-G Technologies, acquired by Secure Mission Solutions in 2009.

“We are looking forward to a promising future at Willow Oaks. It presents Secure Mission Solutions with a modern, enhanced facility and ease of access , allowing us to provide better support to our customers and expand our portfolio of strategic partners,” said Jim Ochse, Secure Mission Solutions Director of Support Services, and chief architect of the move.

The address of the new office is 8260 Willow Oaks Corporate Drive, Suite 300, Fairfax, Va. 22031 and the central telephone number is 703-245-1300.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success. Headquarted in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Fairfax, Va.; Chesapeake, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

Contact
Kelly Russ, Business Development
843.308.4509

ORLANDO, Fla. (November 20, 2011) – Chief Technology Officer, John Hearton, and Chief Engineer, Tim Owen, represented Secure Mission Solutions as members of the Security as a Service (SECaaS) working group for the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) at the organization’s annual Cloud Security Congress held in Orlando, Fla. on Nov. 15 – 18.

This year marks the second year of the annual event which exists to disseminate new guidance, lessons learned, and expertise to the community on Cloud security.  It also serves to afford in-person breakout sessions for CSA working groups pursuing various agendas. 

“Secure Mission Solutions became involved in the CSA because there is a need for an effective migration for our customers into the Cloud.  We have positioned ourselves as industry leaders on Cloud security by assisting in standards development that are being adopted worldwide and providing guidance for the Cloud industry,” said Hearton.

Hearton and Owen met in their SECaaS breakout session on Nov. 14 to discuss the latest on standardization, business case development, and other areas.  The SECaaS working group’s accomplishments include the release of “Domain 14 guidance” and submission of this guidance to the World Standards Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. 

As Cloud Computing has evolved to becoming a household term, many concerns have arisen on the security of the Cloud especially by Government officials and their security providers.  Seeing the need for security and a relative set of industry standards, the CSA was organized to promote the best practices in Cloud Computing. 

Following the trend of Cloud Computing for the past several years, Hearton and Owen became involved with the CSA, providing their security expertise and knowledge. Hearton has since been appointed as a sub-committee chair for the organization.

Hearton and Owen’s efforts with CSA have helped shape adopted standards, define innovative efforts and distinguish Secure Mission Solutions as a leading technological differentiator for Government and industry alike. Prior to the involvement of Secure Mission Solutions, the CSA was focused on the three building blocks of the Cloud to include Infrastructure as a Service, Software as a Service and Platform as a Service. Hearton and Owen’s efforts, leadership and support have enabled SECaaS to be a dominant player within the Cloud construct.

The CSA is a not-for-profit organization with a mission to promote the use of best practices for providing security assurance within Cloud Computing as well as to provide education on the uses of Cloud Computing to help secure all other forms of computing.  It is led by a broad coalition of industry practitioners, corporations, associations and other key stakeholders.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success.  Headquartered in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Charleston, S.C.; Chesapeake, Va.; Fairfax, Va.; Huntsville, Ala.; Lorton, Va.; and Omaha, Neb.

Contact
Kelly Russ, Business Development
843.308.4509

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Nov. 3, 2011)  - The Secure Mission Solutions’ Air Force Medical Systems (AFMS) Team hosted an Infrastructure Summit in support of the Space and Naval Warfare Command (SPAWAR) Medical Infrastructure Modernization Integrated Product Team (IPT) at their North Charleston, S.C. facility. 

Participants included representatives from Air Force Medical Support Agency (AFMSA), Air Force Medical Operations Agency (AFMOA), SPAWAR, and industry partners.  The summit was designed to provide an executive summary of core infrastructure services as well as an in-depth technical overview of both current and future AFMS architectures.

Mark Poe, the Summit sponsor and SPAWAR IPT lead provided a ringing endorsement of the service and commitment provided by Secure Mission Solutions, “Well, you guys did more than knock it out of the park - you hit a Grand Slam! This was an unprecedented display of dedication and support from an unprecedented team of professionals.” 

The Infrastructure Team reviewed the multi-year modernization strategy presented to the Office of the Surgeon General’s CIO’s Modernization Directorate in FY09, covering this strategy in detail, providing both a historical frame of reference as well as a current status of the modernization strategy implementation.

Further, the Infrastructure Team presented an assessment of future infrastructure challenges as well as an assessment of opportunities. The summit also served as the conduit for unveiling the Infrastructure Catalog of Services; a comprehensive framework of defined infrastructure services, target thresholds for the delivery of those services, and proposed metrics for the measurement of service performance. 

Secure Mission Solutions’ AFMS Program Manager John Carretta and Technical Lead, Tommy Melton presented briefings at the event. 

“This Summit provided an opportunity for SMS to shine for our SPAWAR and Air Force customers, further it reinforced SMS as a feature service provider for Air Force Medical systems.  The level and quality of support provided by both project staff and Charleston SMS personnel was exemplary,” said Carretta.

Secure Mission Solutions is the lead team providing full life cycle infrastructure development for AFMS and was responsible for the successful engineering of a solution to facilitate relocating outlying AFMS systems to a single secure site and domain, allowing for increased security posture, consolidation and asset reduction while maintaining functionality through remote access including full failover.  Utilizing a full life cycle approach, our team provided network design, implementation and management; system administration; virtual desktop infrastructure; system documentation; Infrastructure consolidation through virtualization resulting in significant footprint reduction and cost savings; full certification & accreditation; as well as network analysis, security and monitoring. Our network SMEs continue to support system migrations with the end goal of providing complete AFMS system security, portability and redundancy.

Secure Mission Solutions is an integrated security services and solutions provider focused on enabling mission success.  Headquartered in Reston, Va., Secure Mission Solutions has offices in Chesapeake, Va.; Lorton, Va.; Omaha, Neb.; Huntsville, Ala.; and Charleston, SC.

Contact
Kelly Russ, Business Development
843.308.4509