NIWC COSMOS Team Wins Awards, Transforms GovCloud GRC

When it comes to modernizing military cloud technology, speed and security might seem like opposing forces. 

Luckily, the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific (NIWC PAC) is proving otherwise with their COSMOS project.   

COSMOS has transformed how the Department of Defense approaches cloud security and compliance with 200,000% faster onboarding than any other GovCloud environment. The team has recently earned several prestigious awards for their transformative work in automation and acceleration, and we’re honored to be supporting their journey. 

About COSMOS

Working alongside RegScale and Wiz, the COSMOS team has achieved significant results in automating the Risk Management Framework (RMF) process and dramatically accelerating Authority to Operate (ATO) timelines. Their approach has reduced the traditional 12- to 18-month ATO process to just weeks by establishing automated pipelines and producing cyber artifacts on-demand.  

As a state-of-the-art GovCloud infrastructure, COSMOS now has over 70 programs across nine DON commands and other DoD entities. Its work has not only saved significant resources but also addressed government cloud cybersecurity gaps and enabled rapid adoption of new cloud technologies within the DoD. 

The team’s recent award recognition reflects their exceptional dedication to innovation and excellence in advancing national security through improved cloud operations. We’re very proud of the whole crew for their work! 

RegScale Co-Founder & CEO Travis Howerton and CRO Eric Erston joined the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific COSMOS team—James Curtin (AWS Cloud Solution Architect/Diode Technical Lead), Heather Heben (COSMOS Project Manager & NIWC Computer Scientist), and Jonathan Burgard (COSMOS Lead Engineer)—to celebrate their WashingtonExec Pinnacle Award win for Government Information Technology of the Year.

GovExec Fed100 win

Jonathan K. Burgard, the COSMOS Lead Engineer and NIWC PAC Network Manager, was named a 2024 Federal 100 Winner by GovExec in February. This award is among the most prestigious recognitions for the federal IT community, honoring leaders who have driven government operations forward through their innovative uses of technology. 

Mr. Burgard was selected for his critical role in spearheading the COSMOS initiative, where he was a driving force behind the platform’s ability to provide the 200,000% faster onboarding process. As a leader in the development of Regulatory Operations (RegOps) for DoD/DoN, he enabled mission owners to achieve continuous monitoring for cloud resources and to self-onboard, build, and secure AWS workloads in minutes. 

Overall, Mr. Burgard’s technical acumen and innovative mindset have been integral to automating the Navy’s RMF process and enabling a continuous state of cybersecurity readiness — saving mission owners 36+ weeks and substantial costs.

CyberScoop 50 win

Henry Houle, COSMOS Information System Security Manager and NIWC Cybersecurity Lead, has won a 2024 CyberScoop 50 Award in the category of Government Leadership. As a key architect of COSMOS, Mr. Houle and his innovative approach to GovCloud implementation have redefined how the DoD approaches cloud security. 

Leading the development of Regulatory Operations (RegOps) for DoD/DoN, Mr. Houle established automated pipelines that streamline regulatory compliance and continuous monitoring. By integrating RegOps with DevSecOps principles, he and his team created a framework where systems can be Authority to Operate (ATO) ready at deployment. 

Through the implementation of an innovative technology ecosystem combining AWS, Wiz, and RegScale, Houle’s leadership has resulted in dramatic efficiency gains, delivering significant cost savings to the Navy/DoD while maintaining rigorous cybersecurity standards. 

Forum IT 100 win

Heather Heben, COSMOS Project Manager and a NIWC computer scientist, has won a 2024 Forum IT 100 Award. Selected by a panel of federal and industry leaders, Ms. Heben was recognized for her exceptional contributions to advancing government technology and driving breakthrough innovations. 

Under Ms. Heben’s leadership, COSMOS has been able to introduce innovative features like Cloud Native Access Point architecture with Zero Trust security. Due to her strategic vision, COSMOS will be designated as a DON Enterprise IT Service. 

Ms. Heben’s laser-focused, future-forward vision has also challenged the status quo, making COSMOS the first ever GovCloud to mirror a commercial cloud experience for the R&D community — while still adhering to stringent DoD/DoN requirements. Her outstanding contributions have advanced the Navy’s information warfare capabilities and set them on a path for long-term success. 

Washington Exec Pinnacle Award win

Finally, COSMOS has just won the Washington Exec Pinnacle Award for Government Information Technology of the Year. We’re thrilled that the whole team is being recognized for its impactful work in dramatically reducing ATO timelines while maintaining rigorous security standards. 

COSMOS represents a fundamental shift in how the DoD approaches cloud infrastructure. By providing a commercial cloud-like experience within the strict confines of government security requirements, the NIWC Pacific team has created a model that could revolutionize how defense agencies leverage cloud technology well into the future.

Looking ahead: continued innovation and achievement

As we celebrate these accomplishments, we want to extend our congratulations to Jonathan Burgard, Henry Houle, Heather Heben, and the whole COSMOS crew. Their recognition through these industry awards reflects not only their personal excellence but also the impact of their collective vision for modernizing government cloud security. 

Working alongside innovative teams like COSMOS is what inspires us to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the GRC sphere. NIWC’s success serves as a powerful example of how automation and innovation can transform traditional GRC processes. We’ve said it before, but it’s partners like these who drive us to continuously evolve our platform and strive for excellence. 

As we look to the future of GRC and cybersecurity, we’re energized by what lies ahead. The foundations laid by the COSMOS team demonstrate that with the right combination of vision, tech, and dedication, we can help agencies and organizations achieve both speed and security in the cloud. We look forward to continuing our partnership and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in government cloud security. 

To learn more about RegScale’s work with the COSMOS team, take a look at our customer success story. 

Reference herein to any specific commercial companies, products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government, Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific.