Greg Barbaccia, United States Chief Information Officer, compares federal technology recruiting with Silicon Valley compensation and mission appeal on the a16z Podcast.
“While it's very hard for the government to compete with Silicon Valley on compensation, we do rule on mission.”
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More from Greg Barbaccia
AssertionNot checkable as stated
Barbaccia: The US CIO team has more auditors than actual team members
“For me specifically, I have more auditors auditing my team than I have team members. And that's not hyperbole.”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 10:42The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
AssertionNot checkable as stated
Barbaccia: Non-technical federal HR staff screen tech candidates without necessary expertise
“The people who are screening resumes for technologists in the government perhaps don't have the background to know what exactly we need, what exactly we're looking for. Oftentimes are the same people screening resumes for a bunch of different roles under their…”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 25:14The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
AssertionNot checkable as stated
Barbaccia: Non-technical officials award bloated contracts because they misunderstand technology problems
“We are missing that crucial talent in the government. This is why the people who are charged with approving contracts oftentimes do not understand the technology problem deeply. They don't understand what is an appropriate solution. They don't understand how l…”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 25:58The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
Opinion
Barbaccia: Government celebrates process completion over actual mission outcomes
“In the government, oftentimes you celebrate the fact that you checked all the boxes and you completed a process. Disconnected from the reality of this move the needle for whatever outcome we're trying to drive for our mission.”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 30:07The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
PredictionOpen · timeframe Oct 2028
Barbaccia: US government plans a unified citizen portal for benefits and taxes
“So we're thinking about how we could responsibly implement a consent-based, citizen-centric data sharing between agencies which would lead to a portal you could go to and see everything in one place, my benefits information, my tax return status, when my passp…”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 39:43The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
Opinion
Barbaccia: Silicon Valley's 'move fast and break things' ethos fails in government
“Coming from Silicon Valley, where we move fast and break things, you do not have that opportunity in the United States government at this level.”
Greg BarbacciaOct 2, 2025▶ 6:24The Person Who Runs HR For 2 Million Federal Workers
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