MeriTalk (www.meritalk.com), an online community at the crossroads of IT and public policy, announced that Jim Whitehurst, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Red Hat, and a series of Federal CIOs and CFOs will deliver the keynote addresses at the MeriTalk Federal IT on a Budget Forum taking place on May 21, 2009. Hosted at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C., the Forum’s sessions will focus on how the Federal government can change the economics of its $71 billion IT investments.

Mr. Whitehurst’s morning keynote “Answering the Call for Transparency in Government: The Open Source Opportunity” will review the cost savings and increased citizen involvement potential offered by new approaches to Federal technology.

The luncheon keynote CIO/CFO panel will review “The New IT Economics.” These Federal experts will discuss the real cost savings opportunity presented by Open Source, Cloud Computing, and Virtualization. Additionally, they will report on the activities of the Federal CIO Council Cloud Computing Working Group. Importantly, the panelists will talk about the potential to reinvest savings to deliver on the promise of President Obama’s connected and transparent 21^st century government. The panelists include:

• Doug Bourgeois, Director, National Business Center, Department of the Interior
• Robert Carey, CIO, Department of the Navy
• Casey Coleman, CIO, General Services Administration
• Chris C. Kemp, CIO, National Aeronautics and Space Administration Ames Research Center
• Radha Sekar, Assistant Deputy Under Secretary for Financial Management for Under Secretary of Defense Comptroller, Department of Defense

In addition to the keynote addresses, the Federal IT on a Budget Forum will feature some 41 government IT expert speakers in three conference tracks:

• Open Source and the Public Sector
• Virtualization for Efficient and Resilient Computing Environments
• Cutting Through Cloud Computing

“The government is at a watershed moment in terms of its adoption of new technology solutions, access to information, and the call for transparency and increased citizen participation,” said Whitehurst. “Open Source, Virtualization, and Cloud Computing all afford government agencies the opportunity to advance their missions while reducing costs.”

“Considering today’s economic challenges, it’s time to unlock the innovative potential of information technology in Federal government,” said Peter Tseronis, MeriTalk Federal IT on a Budget Forum Co-Chair and Deputy Associate Chief Information Officer at the Department of Energy. “Our program brings government and industry experts together to discuss best practices for meeting these challenges and making the vision of Government 2.0 a reality.”

The Federal IT on a Budget Forum sponsors include: Brocade, Cisco, Cisco/WebEx, Citrix, DLT Solutions, Google, Red Hat, and Symantec. Rick Marcotte, President and CEO of DLT Solutions, will introduce Mr. Whitehurst’s morning keynote address. The Association for Federal Information Resources Management (AFFIRM) will co-locate its May luncheon with the Federal IT on a Budget Forum afternoon keynote CIO/CFO panel. To register to attend the Federal IT on a Budget Forum or for more details on the event program and sponsorships, visit http://www.meritalk.com/2009-federal-it-forum.php.