The VA Innovators Network enlists FedTech to help transform employee ideas into Veteran solutions

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has contracted with start-up organization FedTech to provide training to VA employees during FedTech’s Innovation Boot Camp Nov. 19 – 21 in Washington, D.C.

The instruction will be provided throughout a one-year period to more than 150 employees from 34 Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) Innovators Networks (iNET), sponsored medical centers.

Subsequent web-based training will be provided and will focus on building skills and testing innovations that may influence how VA delivers care and service.

“The VHA Innovators Network helps find and invest in solutions to front-line issues,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “Schooling like this is essential to ensuring growth and advancement of VA’s innovation culture and fostering continuous learning while we work to deliver creative solutions that can positively impact Veteran lives.”

VA’s iNET is comprised of a network of VHA facilities and employees across the country. To participate, these ‘employee innovators’ competed designing innovative solutions to address front-line challenges. Once selected, they received start-up funds to test or create a prototype solution and an opportunity to attend FedTech’s training. More than one million Veterans have been directly impacted by innovation activities stemming from iNET and more than 10,000 VA employees have trained in innovation competencies.

As part of the training, FedTech will provide a network of experienced business professionals to train VHA employee innovators and discuss new ways to use innovation and creativity within VA. FedTech’s training modules will be unique to VHA and include topics such as creating a business model canvas from an idea, developing “sprint” milestones, prototyping an idea into a potential product with evaluation of potential customers, understanding the economic and operational considerations for scale and modeling return on investment and capturing user testimonials.

FedTech has also worked with DOD, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Department of Energy, Department Operations Council, Department of the Interior and Department of Transportation. FedTech’s programs focus on bringing Federal Government technology to the commercial market place, or as in the case of VA, helping employees to transform healthcare from within VA, using the tools already available.