How Andrea Brandon Is Quietly Transforming Government With Emerging Technology

• Andrea Brandon, Department of the Interior deputy assistant secretary for budget, finance, grants and acquisitions, has a long track record of using emerging technologies to improve government business
• She’s used bots, or robotic process automation technology, to speed up contracting and ease laborious tasks
• Get the latest strategies for responsibly implementing digital innovation in government during a fascinating panel discussion at the 2026 Digital Transformation Summit on April 22!

 

Andrea Brandon is a pioneer in using emerging technologies to accelerate the business of government. The Department of the Interior deputy assistant secretary for budget, finance, grants and acquisitions spearheaded the use of bots, or robotic process automation technology, to speed up contracting functions, collect business data and ease other laborious tasks.

The DOI has added three bots—Bob, Oz and Bobby—to its contracting workflows. Some of the processes the DOI seeks to improve with emerging technologies include reviewing and deleting blank pages in litigation preparation, reducing costs for storing records and artificial intelligence-enabled identification of documents.

Discover the latest strategies for responsibly implementing digital innovation in government during the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Digital Transformation Summit on April 22!  Hear directly from Brandon and other leading federal officials including:

• Anil Chaudhry, Department of Transportation senior advisor in the Highly Automated Systems Safety Center of Excellence
• David Hinchman, Government Accountability Office director for IT and cybersecurity

They’ll be speaking on a fascinating From Policy to Practice: Driving Digital Transformation and Responsible AI Across the Federal Enterprise panel discussion. Secure your seat today!

Which Technologies Is the DOI Evaluating to Improve Productivity?

The DOI is evaluating emerging technologies, like blockchain and AI, for their potential to slash costs and improve productivity, FedScoop reported in February. Brandon wants to leverage lessons from other agencies, like the Department of Homeland Security and its procurement innovation laboratory, for the DOI’s future technology endeavors.

“We, as a federal agency, went over to their innovation lab to see what they had going on,” Brandon said. “It was a very good, collaborative experience. We can all benefit from the different things that other federal agencies have going on.”

How Is Andrea Brandon a Pioneer in Digital Transformation?

Brandon has promoted the use of bots in government business as far back as 2019, according to Federal News Network. FNN reported in 2023 that Brandon had integrated six bots, with two more in the works, to tackle low-value and repetitive tasks.

One bot, dubbed “Bob the Closer,” closed out contracts faster. Brandon said the same humans who awarded contracts were required to perform the contract closeout method, holding up the process. Using Bob the Closer, the DOI was able to close 7,441 awards at a rate of 104 seconds per contract.

Another of Brandon’s successful bot initiatives is OSDBot, or Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization bot, which organizes small business data from bureaus and acquisition offices.

“That bot pulls that information automatically for us, and it also does the dashboards and so forth,” Brandon said in 2023. “It keeps us up to speed on a daily basis. It’s working out really well [with] no more manual processes.”

Who Is Andrea Brandon?

Andrea Brandon is DOI deputy assistant secretary for budget, finance, grants and acquisition. She has executive responsibility for the leadership and direction of all budget, finance and related business IT systems for the department with a portfolio of nearly $19 billion in financial assistance and contract awards.

Brandon is an expert in risk management, internal controls, audits, IT innovation and acquisition management, among other skills. She’s spent her 36-year federal career leading government-wide initiatives, such as serving as co-chair for the Council on Financial Assistance Reform.

Brandon is co-chair of the Grants Management Symposium working group for the National Academy of Public Administration and the Office of Management and Budget Chief Acquisition Officers Council. She has worked at a variety of federal agencies: Health and Human Services, Office of Management and Budget, Department of Agriculture, DHS and now DOI.

Let’s dive into the background of the panelists.

Who’s on the From Policy to Practice: Driving Digital Transformation and Responsible AI Across the Federal Enterprise Panel?

The From Policy to Practice: Driving Digital Transformation and Responsible AI Across the Federal Enterprise panel discussion at the 2026 Digital Transformation Summit on April 22 features high-ranking and impact-driven federal officials who’ll share their plans for modernizing government technology. Hear their exclusive plans turning federal AI strategy into operational impact and scaling AI beyond pilot programs.

Anil Chaudhry

Senior Advisor, Highly Automated Systems Safety Center of Excellence; Department of Transportation

Anil “Neil” Chaudhry has more than 20 years of professional experience in operations, technology delivery and program management in the intelligence, national security and defense realms. He is skilled in statistical analysis, information system design and operational research, among other specialties.

Chaudhry is on detail from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, where he serves as senior advisor for AI. He joined the PHMSA after serving as a fellow in the White House Leadership Development Program at the Office of the National Cyber Director in the Executive Office of the President.

David Hinchman

Director for IT and Cybersecurity, Government Accountability Office

David Hinchman leads federal-wide reviews of critical infrastructure cybersecurity, cloud computing security and the federal cyber workforce. He focuses on federal agency efforts to modernize aging and legacy IT.

He previously led GAO’s work on federal data center optimization and cloud computing integration.

Benjamin Baldi (moderator)

Senior Vice President for Global Public Sector, Tricentis

Benjamin Baldi has more than 15 years experience helping federal and state government agencies succeed in their missions through IT modernization. As the leader of Tricentis’ public sector division, he provides Pentagon and civilian customers with low-code software testing.

Baldi drives digital transformation and compliance with executive orders and standards through end-to-end testing automation. He was previously vice president of public sector at SolarWinds, a provider of IT management and observability software.

Are you a GovCon technology executive? Then you cannot miss the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Digital Transformation Summit on April 22. It’s curated specifically for you! Get the latest procurement priorities and actionable business intelligence directly from Kirsten Davies, Department of War chief information officer and Wash100 winner, during her informative keynote speech. Get your pressing questions answered by Davies during her Q&A. Buy your ticket today!

Rob Wilkinson

Chief Technology Officer, Oddball

Rob Wilkinson is an Oddball co-founder. His teams break down complex policy into repeatable and functioning human-focused systems that stand up to audits, serve the public and scale across agencies.

As CTO, Wilkinson creates teams and infrastructures that make upgrading systems secure, repeatable and human-centered. He’s led Oddball engineers in improving mission-critical systems and platforms for agencies including the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.