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The
Government Signs On
Information Sharing Within and Across Agencies
Even prior to September 11, 2001, there had been a growing mandate to increase the speed and ease with which diverse, distributed personnel within the military, DoD, homeland security and the intel community can find, collaborate and communicate with one another, for ongoing projects as well as to respond to sudden emergencies. The 9/11 Commission concluded that the nation needs a networked-based information system that transcends government boundaries.
Bantu, Inc., a leading provider of secure Enterprise Instant Communication and Collaboration technology for the government, is addressing this mission critical problem. The US Army, Navy, Air Force, and other agencies have been using Bantu as the EIM platform for their enterprise-wide knowledge management portals for years. Bantu now enables these customers to communicate securely with one another across agencies at the enterprise level.
Transformation and Net-Centric operations is all about being able to deliver the right information to the right person at the right time. Bantu's government customers are already beginning to execute against this mission critical need. Using Bantu, personnel from one service can, in real-time, search for, find and securely communicate with their counterparts in another agency. Our customers are using this unique capability to support joint training, logistics, emergency planning and response, as well as other initiatives.
Key
government requirements include:
Government
Know-how
Government
agencies look for vendors who have worked with other government
customers, who understand the unique IT and operational requirements
and processes of military and civilian departments, and have
demonstrated the ability to rapidly deliver on their promises.
Bantu has extensive experience with government customers.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Bantu’s personnel
have years of experience working with numerous military, civilian,
federal, state and local governments. Most importantly, our
software has been successfully implemented in large-scale
production deployments at multiple government agencies.
Robust
Security
Whether
integrated into unclassified or classified networks such as
NIRPNet and SIRPNet, the government cannot afford any unauthorized
IM access. That’s why their EIM systems must include
features that ensure the highest levels of security, such
as the Bantu Platform’s compatibility with the host
agency’s firewalls, secure single sign-on and seamless
user authentication, integration with standard SSL encryption,
rules-based enterprise-level and user privacy controls, and
message logging that integrates into security and compliance
systems.
Extensive
Scale
Most
government deployments require EIM systems that can support
extensive scale--more than 10 times the size of the largest
corporate deployments. And, with so many people relying on
these EIM systems, they must operate with the highest reliability.
Case-in-point is Bantu’s deployment within the U.S.
Army’s Army Knowledge Online portal, which serves more
than 1.4 million registered users worldwide and averages hundreds
of thousands of unique user sessions every day.
Emergency
Communications
Interactive,
‘always on’ alerting is critical for enabling
agencies to send pop-up announcements about time-sensitive
events to individuals and groups within departments, across
organizations and around the world—and giving recipients
the tools needed to immediately interact and respond to the
issue at hand. In fact, a number of U.S. government agencies
are rolling out Bantu’s real-time alerting systems in
response to heightened levels of national security and to
help prepare for terrorist threats and other emergencies.
Rapid,
Cost-Effective Deployment
In
a drive to e-enable the government to operate at maximum efficiency
and cost-effectiveness, agencies that choose EIM require almost
immediate implementation—with minimal training and integration
expense. Bantu meets these needs with deployments that can
be completed in just days, an intuitive system that enables
users to get up-to-speed easily, and a suite of training programs
that quickly give IT administrators and end-users what they
need to get the greatest benefits from their Bantu implementation.
Examples
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U.S.
Air Force / Air Force Portal
The
Air Force Portal is a cornerstone of the One Air Force
... One Network vision, through which the Air Force
is transforming the way military and civilian staffs
work. This includes ensuring they have immediate access
to the right contacts from anywhere in the world. The
Bantu Platform provides the ability to see who is online
throughout the Air Force community and its 110 air bases,
and instantly collaborate with them within the Air Force
Portal, helping personnel remain informed and make better
decisions. The Air Force selected Bantu for its security,
flexibility, tight integration and proven large-scale
deployments.
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U.S.
Air Force / Knowledge Now
The
Air Force Material Command (AFMC) is deploying Bantu
EIM to worldwide users of its Knowledge Now collaboration
system, which features more than 300 Community of Practice
(CoP) groups that use Bantu to collaborate on time-critical,
emergency issues and drive innovations that support
Air Force operations. Deploying Bantu EIM within Knowledge
Now helps team personnel immediately and easily find
relevant sources and tap their expertise. Bantu’s
proven security—including its ability to work
behind the AFMC’s firewall, and the ease with
which it integrates into key applications such as the
Communities of Practice members list and its document
management system, make it an ideal, real-time way to
collaborate on urgent operational matters and increase
critical learning.
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Award-Winning Portal for U.S. Army
Bantu
is part of Army Knowledge Online (AKO), which was awarded
the Best Internal Portal by Digital Consulting Institute
(DCI) 2003. The portal is the world's largest collaborative
intranet, serving more than 1.4 million registered users
worldwide. When the Army decided to add instant messaging
and presence to the AKO, it determined that only Bantu
EIM had the security and robust scalability they required.
Bantu was integrated and deployed into the AKO portal
in just two weeks. Additionally, Bantu provided Army
personnel with a robust communication tool for the 9-11
Terrorist Attacks, when other communications methods
failed, as well as during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
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U.S.
Army / Communication & Electronics Command
The
U.S. Army’s Communications & Electronics Command
(CECOM) is integrating Bantu EIM into a new tool for
monitoring the security and reliability of computer
networks used in the digitized battlefield. Bantu’s
Alerts, Presence and IM capabilities will help Information
Assurance managers in the field collaborate with Army
communications experts worldwide in order to resolve
critical issues faster and more effectively. The Bantu
EIM Platform is being integrated by CECOM’s Space
& Terrestrial Communications Directorate, which
is responsible for developing secure tactical communications
that enhance battlefield operations.
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U.S.
Navy / Navy Knowledge Online
The
Navy’s NKO portal enables all active duty, reserve,
civilian and retired personnel to collaborate online
for training and learning purposes, and enables them
to connect with experts in their field. Bantu is available
to all Navy and Marine Corps personnel enterprise-wide,
including sailors at sea. The NKO offers numerous ways
to connect and share information: personnel directories,
file directories, online forms -- throughout which Bantu
presence and IM are embedded. The real-time, secure
knowledge transfer capability is helping the Navy revolutionize
the way it trains and empowers sailors, and having a
direct impact on operational readiness.
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Department
of Homeland Security / Disasterhelp.gov
FEMA
(now part of the Department of Homeland Security) has
deployed Bantu’s real-time collaboration solution
to federal, state and local agencies involved in disaster
preparedness and response via the Disasterhelp.gov portal.
Enabling this network of 4 million first responders
– including fire, law enforcement and emergency
medical services personnel – to communicate and
work together instantly is critical to the federal government’s
Disaster Management e-Government Initiative. FEMA chose
Bantu for its security, scalability and 'always-on'
emergency alerting capabilities.
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National
Institute of Standards & Technology / 360vu Portal
The
U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST) deployed Bantu’s
EIM Platform to facilitate real-time communications
among certified 360vu consultants located throughout
the U.S. The 360vu Program is a NIST initiative which
helps small and mid-sized manufacturers compete more
effectively in the global marketplace. Adding Bantu’s
real-time capabilities to the 360vu portal enables NIST
staff and consultants to instantly and efficiently collaborate
on how to best guide their clients. Bantu was chosen
because it has the scalability, integration and security
NIST needs—as well as key communication functionality
that will continue adding value to its users well into
the future.
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International Broadcasting Bureau / Hosted system
The
International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) is rolling out
Bantu EIM to its worldwide group of broadcast engineers.
The Platform’s secure IM, Alerts and Presence
capabilities enable engineers to instantly collaborate
on emergency developments and resolve issues that could
compromise broadcast reliability, regardless of where
they’re located or what kind of computing device
they use. IBB is using Bantu EIM as a subscription service
hosted by Bantu. This highly secure, reliable and low-overhead
deployment option appeals to government agencies. Under
the supervision of the Broadcasting Board of Governors,
IBB provides the administrative and engineering support
for U.S. government-funded non-military international
broadcast services, including Voice of America, Radio
Sawa, Radio and TV Martí (Office of Cuba Broadcasting),
and WORLDNET Television and Film Service.
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