Welcome to Our Quarterly Newsletter
As we kick off Q2 2026, the federal cybersecurity landscape is evolving faster than ever. Zero Trust mandates, AI-powered threats, CMMC deadlines, and data modernization initiatives are creating both challenges and opportunities for government agencies and defense contractors.
At August Schell, we’re in the trenches with you — helping federal civilian agencies, DoD organizations, and defense contractors turn security challenges into strategic advantages. This newsletter is our way of sharing insights, technical expertise, and trends we’re seeing across the public sector.
The Missing Layer in Most AI Strategies: Data Lifecycle Maturity
The Data Challenge
The need for AI dominance is now, and every organization is striving to meet mandated data and AI regulations. August Schell is accelerating Data and AI growth initiatives by helping federal agencies transform raw, unstructured data into operational AI capabilities. Through our expansive partnerships with industry, we bring programmatic data labeling to scale, bridging the gap between fragmented data assets and production-ready AI pipelines — enabling automated classification, continuous visibility, and a shift from manual tagging to policy-driven, automated workflows.
Beyond technology, we guide agencies through the full data-to-AI journey, advising on the right solutions, identifying practical off-the-shelf capabilities, and supporting enterprise data governance and management programs. The result is cleaner, AI-ready data, faster time to mission impact, and a scalable foundation for secure, compliant AI adoption.
August Schell: 30+ Years of Mastering Federal Data Infrastructure
At August Schell, we don’t just understand the tech — we understand the Mission. We’ve spent three decades helping federal agencies navigate the complexities of secure data infrastructure.
We help your agency bridge the Data Lifecycle gap through:
- Zero Trust Data Integration: We ensure your infrastructure aligns with federal cybersecurity mandates, protecting sensitive data at rest and in transit.
- Programmatic Data Labeling: We excel as an integrator bridging raw data assets and production-ready AI pipelines.
- Integrated Data Architecture Engineering: Our engineers design scalable, resilient infrastructures — on-premise, cloud, or hybrid — that allow for seamless data flow and high availability.
- Compliance-First Architecture: Our solutions are designed with NIST and FedRAMP frameworks in mind from day one.
- Data Governance and Policy Services: We help you define ownership, accountability, and compliance standards to ensure data quality and regulatory adherence.
Power of Splunk + Cisco — Let August Schell Show You!
Everything looks fine — until it doesn’t. One moment your service is green, the next it’s red, and users are already feeling the impact. That’s where Cisco and Splunk make the difference. By combining Cisco infrastructure, ThousandEyes visibility, and Splunk analytics, organizations shift from reactive firefighting to proactive network assurance. Instead of jumping between tools and war rooms, teams gain a single, unified view across network, applications, and user experience, so they can see what matters and fix what breaks before it escalates.
At August Schell, we help customers compress hours of troubleshooting into minutes. By correlating telemetry across Cisco ACI, routers, firewalls, and synthetic monitoring, Splunk pinpoints root cause without the noise. Layer in ITSI for service-level visibility and SOAR for automated response, and teams aren’t just detecting issues faster — they’re resolving them before they spread.
Contact Us for a DemoWhat We’re Seeing
CMMC Deadline Is Set: November 10, 2026 — Are You Ready?
August Schell is now an authorized Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Third-Party Assessment Organization (C3PAO). This authorization enables us to conduct official CMMC Level 2 assessments for defense contractors across the Defense Industrial Base (DIB), helping organizations protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and maintain eligibility for Department of Defense (DoD) contract awards.
CMMC requirements are already appearing in DoD solicitations, and the timeline is now firm. By November 10, 2026, CMMC compliance will be a prerequisite for contract eligibility. Organizations that delay risk losing access to new contract opportunities, being excluded from recompetes, and failing to meet prime contractor flow-down requirements.
Demand for certified assessors is increasing rapidly across the Defense Industrial Base. Most C3PAOs are currently booked six to nine months out, and assessment capacity remains constrained. August Schell is able to schedule assessments immediately — a critical advantage for organizations that need to meet upcoming contract requirements.
August Schell is actively scheduling readiness engagements, pre-assessment gap reviews, and formal CMMC Level 2 assessments. If you’re a contractor waiting to start your CMMC journey, Q2 2026 is the time to get moving — Level 2 certifications require significant technical implementation. This isn’t a paperwork exercise.
Start Your CMMC ConsultationExecutive Order: Combating Cybercrime — March 6, 2026
This recent Executive Order requires coordinated action to detect, disrupt, and dismantle cybercrime networks targeting Americans. August Schell’s in-house engineering expertise paired with our extensive partner program can assist your organization through:
- Automated detection of malicious domains and phishing campaigns
- AI-based scam detection
- Command-and-control infrastructure analysis
- Fraud detection platforms
Reach out to August Schell for action plan development, consulting, scoping, or solutioning across SIEM/XDR platforms, AI-based fraud detection, email security/phishing protection, network traffic analysis, and ransomware prevention.
As Chief Data & AI Officer at August Schell, Caroline Kuharske is on a mission to turn complex data challenges into actionable mission outcomes. By blending deep technical expertise with a security-first mindset, she helps organizations navigate the rapidly evolving AI landscape without compromising integrity.
Caroline brings a “battle-tested” perspective to August Schell, having previously served as the Chief Data Officer at the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), where she mastered the art of bridging the gap between rigid federal policy and the need for high-speed technical execution.
With the addition of Caroline, August Schell is strengthening our ability to help federal agencies successfully adopt AI — where outcomes depend less on the model and more on having the right data foundation in place. We enable agencies to make their data AI-ready through standardized tagging, optimized pipelines, and alignment with emerging standards.
Contact Us to Learn MoreWhere You Can Find Us in Q2 2026
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Have Questions?
Reach out to our team for consulting, solutioning, or to learn more about any topic in this newsletter.
info@augustschell.com