国家安全需要创新文化
【中美创新时报2024 年 9 月 10 日编译讯】（记者温友平编译）对于通用动力信息技术公司 (GDIT) 来说，创新事关国家安全。这家市值 85 亿美元的全球性公司为美国政府的每个机构提供咨询、技术和任务服务，包括对国防和情报机构至关重要的项目。推动其众多技术解决方案（包括人工智能、云、网络和量子）的是一种前瞻性的创新文化。对此，《Fast Company》作者FastCo Works作了下述报道。
这家总部位于弗吉尼亚州福尔斯彻奇的公司意识到其高素质员工队伍的巨大价值，因此采取了保护心理健康和鼓励职业发展的举措。通用动力信息技术公司 (General Dynamics Information Technology) 致力于履行其紧迫的国家安全使命，并持续关注员工福祉，因此被《Fast Company》评为 2024 年最佳创新者工作场所之一。
GDIT 总裁艾米·吉利兰（Amy Gilliland）分享了她对创新如何塑造公司和促进员工福祉的见解。
1. 如何确保创新融入 GDIT 文化？
今年，我们制定了一份蓝图，让所有 28,000 名 GDIT 员工清楚地了解他们如何在各自的角色中对我们的战略重点产生影响。我们身处一个快速发展的行业，每个人都必须知道重点在哪里。员工知道，无论他们是在金融部门还是在前线，我们都希望每个人都能提出新的想法。创新不仅仅是 GDIT 的流行词，它是员工绩效的可衡量部分。我们不断评估员工如何推动公司前进，鼓励他们创造性地思考并挑战现状。当员工觉得自己的想法很重要并且可以产生真正的影响时，这会推动个人满足感和组织成功。
2. 您认为下一波技术创新是什么？
我们的投资领域之一是人工智能，它正在迅速发展。例如，我们今年最近赢得了一项合同，对美国中央司令部的 IT 基础设施进行现代化改造，我们正在使用人工智能帮助他们收集通过多种途径获得的所有情报，并将其迅速传播给需要的作战人员。在医疗市场，我们已应用人工智能来防止欺诈、浪费和滥用，节省了超过 10 亿美元。
虽然人工智能已经出现，但我相信下一个技术创新是后量子密码学。我们正在帮助我们的客户思考如何为量子计算机成为现实的那一天做好准备——这种新型网络安全将成为必需品。人工智能和后量子密码学解决方案都是我们在 2023 年初为推进政府任务而推出的技术投资战略的重点领域。
3. GDIT 实施了哪些举措来吸引和留住顶尖人才？
如果员工在目前的公司找不到这些机会，他们就会去别处寻找。这就是为什么我们决定创建职业中心，这是一个人工智能驱动的工具，可以帮助我们的员工在 GDIT 内找到新的机会。员工可以上传他们的简历、经验和兴趣，职业中心会将他们与符合他们个人资料的空缺职位进行匹配。它还确定了他们需要接受的培训或认证，以胜任他们感兴趣的职位。这一工具在促进内部流动和建立一支跨多个学科的熟练劳动力队伍方面发挥了重要作用。2023 年，超过 5000 名员工进行了内部流动。
我们还优先考虑员工的心理健康。通过我们的“你好吗，真的吗？”活动，我们为管理人员提供了工具，让他们可以进行关于心理健康的真实对话——这种对话在国防工业中并不常见。无论我在科威特还是南卡罗来纳州，员工们都告诉我，这一举措对他们的生活产生了重大影响。有些人甚至说，这挽救了他们的生命，因为他们能够进行那些艰难的对话。
题图：GDIT 总裁 Amy Gilliland 为这家全球技术和咨询公司带来了新一轮创新。
附原英文报道：
National security requires a culture of innovation
GDIT is constantly exploring new ways to better protect our country
BY FastCo Works
For General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), innovation is a matter of national security. The $8.5 billion global company provides consulting, technology and mission services to every agency across the U.S. government, including projects crucial to defense and intelligence agencies. Driving its many technology solutions—including AI, cloud, cyber, and quantum—is a forward-focused culture of innovation.
And understanding the immense value of its highly capable workforce, the Falls Church, Virgina–based company has embraced initiatives that protect mental health and encourage career growth. Pursuing its urgent national-security mission—with a continuing focus on employee wellbeing—has earned General Dynamics Information Technology a place among Fast Company’s list of the Best Workplaces for Innovators for 2024.
GDIT president Amy Gilliland shared her insights on how innovation can shape companies and boost employee wellbeing.
1. How do you ensure that innovation is embedded within GDIT culture?
This year, we created a blueprint that gives all 28,000 GDIT employees a clear understanding of how they can make an impact on our strategic priorities in their individual roles. We operate in a fast-moving industry, and everyone must know where to focus. Employees know that it doesn’t matter if they’re in finance or on the front lines—we expect everyone to bring new ideas to the table. Innovation isn’t just a buzzword at GDIT, it’s a measurable part of employee performance. We’re constantly assessing how employees are driving our company forward, encouraging them to think creatively and challenge the status quo. When employees feel that their ideas matter and can have a real impact, it drives personal satisfaction and organizational success.
2. What do you see as the next wave of tech innovation?
One of our areas of investment is AI, which is evolving rapidly. For example, we recently won a contract this year to modernize the United States Central Command’s IT infrastructure, where we’re using AI to help them gather all the intelligence that comes through multiple pathways and disseminate it quickly to warfighters who need it. In the health market, we’ve applied AI to prevent fraud, waste and abuse, delivering more than one billion in savings.
While AI is already here, I believe the next tech innovation is post-quantum cryptography. We’re helping our customers think about how they can prepare for the day when quantum computers become a reality—and this new kind of cybersecurity will become necessary. Both AI and post-quantum cryptography solutions are areas of focus in the technology investment strategy we unveiled in early 2023 to advance government missions.
3. What initiatives has GDIT implemented to attract and retain top talent?
If employees can’t find those opportunities within their current company, they’ll look elsewhere. That’s why we decided to create the Career Hub, an AI-powered tool that helps our employees find new opportunities within GDIT. Employees can upload their resumes, experiences, and interests, and Career Hub will match them with open positions that fit their profiles. It also identifies the training or certifications they need to be qualified for the roles they’re interested in. This tool has been instrumental in promoting internal mobility and in building a workforce skilled across many disciplines. In 2023, more than 5000 employees moved internally.
We also prioritize our employees’ mental health. Through our “How Are You, Really?” campaign, we give managers tools to have authentic conversations about mental health—conversations that aren’t typical in the defense industry. Whether I’m in Kuwait or South Carolina, employees tell me this initiative has made a significant difference in their lives. Some have even said that it saved their lives because they were able to have those difficult conversations.
