In Pursuit with Mike Vichich — Government Technology & Public Sector Sales

In Pursuit is a podcast about how government really works — how decisions are made, how procurement actually functions, and how progress gets built inside public sector systems. Each episode features candid conversations with government officials, procurement directors, policy practitioners, and private sector leaders navigating the intersection of business and government. We cover the decisions that happen long before a contract goes public, the relationships that shape policy, and the strategies that move the needle in public administration. If you work in government, sell to it, or want to understand how public sector decisions shape the world around you — In Pursuit gives you the access and context to navigate it.

In Pursuit with Mike Vichich — Government Technology & Public Sector Sales is a technology podcast hosted by Pursuit, with 13 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Pursuit hosts In Pursuit with Mike Vichich — Government Technology & Public Sector Sales, a technology show with 13 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #13

  In Pursuit #13 | Mike Vichich & Dan Whitehouse — Modernizing Paratransit for 8M Riders at SMART

  Sep 25, 202652 minS1

  Dan Whitehouse, VP of Paratransit Services at SMART, joins Mike Vichich to break down what it actually took to modernize paratransit scheduling across three counties and 8 million trips a year in Metro Detroit. Visit pursuit.us Timestamps: 0:00 Cold Open: "Everything Isn't Roses and Beauties" 0:37 Introducing Dan Whitehouse & SMART Paratransit 1:52 The Problem: Pen-and-Paper Scheduling and Unknown Capacity 4:17 What "On-Time Performance" Means in Paratransit 5:03 First Launch: On-Time Performance Plummets 6:43 The Human Cost: Riders, Drivers, and a Team on Edge 8:54 Rolling Back and Rebuilding Trust 12:35 Stepping Back to Diagnose the Real Problem 14:37 Starting Over: 18 Vendor Demos and an Open-API Requirement 17:45 Building a Better Procurement Document 21:25 Fixing the Budget: From Blank Check to One Number 26:57 Piggybacking: Bringing Smaller Agencies Along 30:26 Software vs. Human Judgment 33:14 What It Means for Dispatchers and Call Takers 35:37 Building the Implementation Team 40:01 The Vision: One Unified Passenger Database 43:53 "It Can Be Done": Reflecting on the Journey 44:58 Why Talking About Failure Builds Trust 46:41 The Payoff: A Historic Vote and More Grant Funding 48:52 Advice for Anyone Starting This Journey

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #12

  In Pursuit #12 | Mike Vichich & Art Thompson — IT's Role in Vendor Selection & Budget Decisions

  Jun 28, 20261h 7mS1

  Detroit CIO Art Thompson breaks down how cities actually buy tech — RFPs, pilots, IT's role, and what gets vendors rejected. Visit pursuit.us Timestamps: 00:00 Cold open: why government deals are a long-haul game 00:52 Meet Art Thompson, Detroit CIO & CISO 01:39 How a family tip led Art into city government 02:46 A day in the life of a city CIO 03:44 Working with the mayor and department leaders 04:44 When IT should get involved in a project 05:27 Does IT have veto power over a purchase? 06:13 Why integrations are a top priority 06:34 HIPAA, CJIS, and the compliance patchwork of government IT 07:19 Who owns integration work: city or vendor? 07:37 The rise of shadow IT 09:25 The "two wins": technical win vs. procurement win 11:14 How departments and IT divide responsibility 12:38 How Detroit pressure-tests vendors in demos 13:11 Pilots, proof of value, and why timing matters 14:05 How a 30-day RFP pilot actually works 14:38 Budget basics: department vs. enterprise purchases 16:13 IT's expanded role in multi-department deals 16:48 Cooperative contracts: NASPO, Sourcewell, Omnia 18:05 Detroit's RFP threshold and ordinance rules 18:29 How long an RFP cycle really takes 19:08 What happens after the award: city council process 20:24 Mapping the full procurement timeline 20:45 Contract negotiation: how long it takes 21:06 Toughest contract terms: indemnification & termination 21:50 When the city accepts less-favorable terms 22:21 How often Detroit negotiates with multiple vendors 22:21 Should agencies merge multiple RFPs into one? 24:25 OEMs vs. resellers/SIs: Art's preference 26:18 The best (and worst) way for vendors to engage 27:33 Why low RFP win rates make sense to Art 29:47 How early vendor meetings quietly shape RFPs 30:59 SaaS vs. capital vs. consumption: which model wins 32:11 Why credit-based AI pricing makes Art nervous 34:16 Per-user caps: do they solve the problem? 34:42 Revenue-aligned vendor models (the DMV kiosk example) 36:11 Case study: the Detroit body camera program 36:54 The DOJ consent decree that started it all 38:17 Officer pushback and how it was managed 40:48 Inside the body cam procurement and pilot 42:01 Installing and testing on real squad cars 43:06 How the testing team evolved over time 44:04 Pricing transparency during vendor evaluation 44:42 How body cams improved de-escalation 46:04 From body cams to the Real-Time Crime Center 47:45 Project Greenlight: private camera integration 48:03 Where AI fits into video review today 49:17 Data licensing and what the city can analyze 50:41 Inside the Real-Time Crime Center 51:36 How RTCC connects to 911 and dispatch 54:09 Setting the agenda with the police chief 55:36 Piloting new tech inside an existing contract 56:09 IT org growth: 2016 to today 57:34 Detroit's geospatial and GIS data initiatives 59:28 Where AI ranks among CIO priorities now 01:00:13 Detroit's AI guardrails and vendor risk reviews 01:02:02 How Art prioritizes which AI projects to pursue 01:03:22 AI red flags: what gets a vendor rejected 01:04:24 Art's biggest mindset shift after 10 years in gov 01:06:08 Closing thoughts

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #11

  In Pursuit #11 | Mike Vichich & Glenn Caldwell — Running a Township: Staffing, Unions & Culture

  Jun 8, 202659 minS1

  Glenn Caldwell shares how Northville Township funds $45M projects, negotiates 5 unions, and runs lean government without raising taxes. Visit pursuit.us Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 0:35 Glenn's Origin Story: Co-op at 16, Straight to Government 3:26 The Arc of Township Budgets: Pre-Recession to Recovery 4:41 How a Township's Budget Works: Revenue Sources 5:16 Shared Services & Intergovernmental Agreements 9:02 Roads, the County, and Navigating What You Don't Own 11:28 Public Works: Water, Sewer & the $4M Water Tower 14:56 Procurement Philosophy: Why Low Bid Isn't Always Right 17:13 Township Governance: Charters, Ordinances & State Law 18:29 The Central Services Complex: $45M Without Raising Taxes 21:55 Capital Budgeting & the 6-Year Improvement Plan 29:05 Leadership Philosophy: Hire Well, Then Get Out of the Way 31:37 Managing Directors: Weekly 1-on-1s & Accountability 34:35 Five Unions: How Northville Negotiates Without Attorneys 42:41 Discipline & Progressive Counseling in Local Government 45:54 Leadership Transitions & Staff Turnover 47:59 Public Sector Incentives: What Actually Drives Performance 50:46 The Government Value Proposition: Pensions, Benefits & Balance 52:32 How Government Pensions Actually Work 55:06 AI in Local Government: Efficiency, Governance & Data Privacy

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #10

  In Pursuit #10 | Mike Vichich & Jim Weaver — The Real Role of a State CIO: Beyond Managing IT

  May 24, 20261h 10mS1

  <p>For this episode of In Pursuit, we sat down with Jim Weaver — former State CIO of Washington, CIO and Cabinet Secretary of North Carolina, CTO of Pennsylvania, and past president of NASCIO.<br /><br />If you've ever wondered why a deal that seemed solid just stalled, or why timing your outreach to a state matters as much as your pitch — Jim explains the mechanics that most vendors never see from the inside.<br /><br />Visit pursuit.us<br /><br />Timestamps:<br />00:00 Intro<br />01:11 Meet Jim Weaver: 37 Years on the Buying Side<br />01:57 What a State CIO Actually Does (It's Not...

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #9

  In Pursuit #9 | Mike Vichich & Jocelyn Benson — Modernizing Government with Data

  May 2, 202638 minS1

  <p>Michigan's Secretary of State turned around the DMV and broke voter turnout records. Here's the data-driven playbook she used to modernize government.<br /><br />Visit pursuit.us<br /><br />00:00 Intro<br />00:35 Meet Jocelyn Benson — from civil rights to running Michigan's DMV<br />04:32 What was actually broken at the DMV<br />07:35 Was it a funding problem, a process problem, or neglect?<br />09:08 Why government incentives don't work like the private sector<br />12:28 Moving transactions online: from 28% to 60%<br />15:27 Kiosks in grocery stores — meeting citizens where they are<br />17:41 Government tech procurement: the right way to structure a vendor contract<br />19:19 What...

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on In Pursuit with Mike Vichich — Government Technology & Public Sector Sales. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.