UW and Wyoming SBDC Network Host Program About Data Security Requirements for Government Contractors

Data security is becoming increasingly more important for businesses that wish to sell their goods or services to the government.  

Small-business owners in Wyoming can learn more about data security during a “Lunch and Learn” program with the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network’s Wyoming APEX Accelerator, formerly the Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC).

Thomas Gerke, PTAC regional manager for Utah, will discuss contracting with a cybersecurity provider during an online workshop titled “Data Security Requirements for Government Contractors” Wednesday, March 1, from noon-1 p.m.

To register, go here. Registration is free.

Gerke will discuss the current requirements of Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 252.204-7012 and Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.204-21 using NIST SP 800-171 guidance. He also will touch on the relationship between the current requirements and the upcoming Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification.

Gerke began working on information security issues in 1973 while stationed in Guam. He has been a logistics specialist and program manager for the Air Force Logistics Command and spent several years managing software for a tactical command and control system.

After retiring from civil service, he continued working on software projects and began providing proposal support for a large government contractor. Once he returned to Salt Lake City, Utah, he continued to provide proposal management for a small government contractor and has seen, firsthand, the challenges facing small businesses.  

Gerke holds degrees in business and law, and master certificates in Lean Logistics and Six Sigma. He is both an Association of Proposal Management Professionals certified practitioner and a Project Management Institute project management professional.

For more information, call Maureen Johnson, marketing, communication and database manager for the Wyoming SBDC Network, at (307) 343-0925 or email mjohn125@uwyo.edu.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers business expertise to help Wyoming residents think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their business. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by the University of Wyoming with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.