Season 3 Trailer

Kick-off Season 3 with host Rob Trubia and producer Max Stempora as they dive into the behind-the-scenes work of GSA Does That!? Reflect on the podcast's journey, discover highlights, and find out what's coming up next for the show. Join the conversation and share your ideas as they continue delivering engaging content about GSA's impact. Tune in now!

"GSA Does That!?" is the U.S. General Services Administration's first agency-wide podcast, offering listeners an inside look into how GSA and its partners benefit the American people. Hosted by Rob Trubia, the podcast features interviews with GSA leaders, experts, partners, and customers, covering topics such as federal real estate, acquisitions, and technology. The title reflects many's surprise at the scope of GSA's impact. At the same time, the artwork pays homage to President Harry S. Truman, who established GSA in 1949 to improve government efficiency and save taxpayer money. Whether you're a policy wonk or just curious about government operations, you can join the listener community.

For more information about the show visit, gsa.gov/podcast.

Transcript

00;00;00;00 - 00;00;28;29

Rob Trubia

Well, it's time to kick off season three of GSA Does That!? I'm your host, Rob Trubia, and in this, our first episode of our third season, we'd like to take some time to reflect a little on our first two seasons and set the stage for season number three. My guest today is our producer, Mr. Max Stempora. Max, my friend, how are you doing today?

00;00;29;02 - 00;00;34;15

Max Stempora

Doing great, Rob. I am excited to be on with you and talking season three of GSA Does That!?

00;00;34;17 - 00;00;47;16

Rob Trubia

Yeah, this is going to be a lot of fun. I think it's pretty neat that you're a guest. You don't typically, function in this role. I don't think you ever have, actually. So I'm excited. I'm excited you're here and I'm excited to ask you some questions.

00;00;47;18 - 00;00;48;29

Max Stempora

Yeah, I can't wait.

00;00;49;01 - 00;01;04;11

Rob Trubia

Well, let's start off pretty simply. Not everybody knows the answer to this one, but I'd like to know. And I'd like our listeners to know a little bit more about how the idea for GSA Does That!? came about. And and just what type of podcast is GSA Does That!?

00;01;04;14 - 00;01;22;26

Max Stempora

Sure. I know I think that's a great place to start for anybody who's new. Maybe you've only tuned into one episode, maybe two. This whole podcast, you might be asking yourself, what is this? Why should I be listening? And the goal with GSA Does That!? And what we're really trying to do is to tell the stories about the people and programs.

00;01;22;28 - 00;01;44;13

Max Stempora

And with the podcast, I think it allows us to tell those stories a little bit more fully, if you will. When you compare it to, say, a blog or a social media post where you're really limited in the amount of text, you can do so with the podcast, you know, and a great host, the conversation can kind of go on and, you know, touch on a bunch of different things.

00;01;44;16 - 00;01;51;11

Max Stempora

So GSA Does That!?, again, people behind the scenes making government work. That's really what we're doing here.

00;01;51;16 - 00;02;04;05

Rob Trubia

Well, I appreciate that answer. I wondered if you could talk a little bit about some of your favorite episodes, maybe even a couple that for you really hit the mark when it comes to this is what GSA Does That!? is all about.

00;02;04;08 - 00;02;24;18

Max Stempora

Sure. That's a really hard question for me, right? Because there's little bits in every episode that I like. The first one that comes to mind is a two parter. So maybe that's a little bit cheating. But it was our only two parter that we've done, and it was about the sale of lighthouses. And I think what is great about that episode is, like I said, it's a two parter.

00;02;24;18 - 00;02;46;07

Max Stempora

And the first one, we're learning about how the Coast Guard sort of selects which lighthouses are going to be decommissioned. And then we learn about GSA's role in the process and what we do to to help the Coast Guard. And then in the second episode, we dive into what it's like when somebody actually buys a lighthouse. And you would think, you know, oh, I put a bid on the lighthouse.

00;02;46;07 - 00;03;07;04

Max Stempora

It's pretty straightforward. You get a lighthouse, boom. It's yours. But that episode really unraveled a lot of that details, right? Like, I remember, the person we talked to telling us about, you know, having appliances delivered via a barge and having a crane to pull them out and get them, you know, delivered like it was a process.

00;03;07;10 - 00;03;25;26

Max Stempora

But what came through that entire episode in that conversation with her was just the love she had. And like, I think if you were to ask her, you know, would you do it again? The answer was absolutely yes. So like, that's probably my favorite one. Right off the bat, I would throw it to you, you know, as I'm talking about learning new things and what I'm getting out of it.

00;03;25;26 - 00;03;41;27

Max Stempora

Rob, you know, you started at GSA two years ago or pretty much a month before the podcast started to air. What have you learned? What's been surprising to you that you didn't know or you know, you're fascinated to find out about every episode?

00;03;42;00 - 00;04;10;07

Rob Trubia

You know, I learned that the name General Services Administration is incredibly fitting because it really is so general. And and I don't want people to think that general means boring or anything like that. It's not that. It's just that it's a vast and it's deep. I mean, there's just GSA touches so many things. I mean, people that know anything about GSA automatically go to, you know, IT contracts, real estate, cars and trucks.

00;04;10;10 - 00;04;37;00

Rob Trubia

All very true. And we have, a tremendous staff and tremendous people that work, that type of thing each and every day. But I think at its core, and what has been interesting to learn is that GSA is really technology centric. It's really, about making sure technology works for the American people. And I've learned about that, and I've just met so many fascinating people, so many just they're just interesting.

00;04;37;00 - 00;05;00;25

Rob Trubia

They're from all over the country. A lot of great backgrounds. And, it's just been fun to get to know them and know their part. And the thing that I also learned is that people love, absolutely love working for GSA. I mean, you know, one of my favorite episodes was we're just talking about how we just landed as the number two best agency for medium size agencies to work in the federal government.

00;05;00;25 - 00;05;21;24

Rob Trubia

And, you know, as the last two years of unfolded, I've really I could see why that is, because when we talk to folks, they are really genuinely excited about working for GSA each and every day, and they really believe in what they do, very much public servants at heart. And I think that's that's really just been a lot of fun.

00;05;21;24 - 00;05;43;11

Rob Trubia

So, yeah, a lot of good things that I've learned, it's been fascinating. And to know that we sell light houses is also, you know, pretty incredible. It's one of my favorite things to tell people. I'm curious, Max, do you feel like the podcast is resonating with our audience? It seems like we've gotten a very good, foothold very quickly with this podcast.

00;05;43;13 - 00;06;02;08

Max Stempora

Yeah, absolutely. I think what a little bit of what you just touched on and kind of what I was saying, you know, GSA does so much stuff, right? I mean, it's a wide variety of things we do. So I think our listeners kind of enjoy that or they get to tune in. And it's not just learning about acquisition, right.

00;06;02;08 - 00;06;26;21

Max Stempora

It's not just learning about buildings. Right? Every episode. It's something different. Right. And we're talking to not just people inside GSA. We're talking to people from across government, across the private sector. Right. So listeners aren't just getting a podcast based on one thing. They're getting a ton of different information week to week, episode to episode. And I think that's what people really enjoy, right?

00;06;26;21 - 00;06;37;01

Max Stempora

It's not just the engaging conversation, it's the fact that they're learning something new every week. So yeah, I think it definitely resonates. And hopefully season three, we can keep building on that.

00;06;37;03 - 00;07;02;09

Rob Trubia

You know, podcasting itself is, it's exploded. You know, it is a bit of a unique medium, but it's certainly, common now. Like it's out there, like everyone's podcasting. And I'm curious, Max, how in your opinion, you feel like podcasting is really effective communication tool? And I'm wondering, you know, particularly for, for government agencies like ours.

00;07;02;11 - 00;07;26;23

Max Stempora

Yeah. So I think podcasting is a great tool. Right. And this is what we do day to day. So, so maybe I'm a little bit biased, but when I look at the benefits of a podcast, they are typically longer form, right? So it allows for a more in-depth conversation. So it's not just 500 words on a blog or, you know, 240 characters in a social media post, you can actually dive into the weeds of something, right?

00;07;26;23 - 00;07;56;18

Max Stempora

And really explain why it's beneficial to the listener. What's it going to do for the country? And it's not just that surface level information, right? You can really have that back and forth conversation and I think that's another thing that makes it great about a podcast and having a host, where, you know, if the guest says something, you know, we can dive down that rabbit hole, we can dig a little bit deeper, right, and go a little bit off script and, and make the conversation that much more engaging.

00;07;56;18 - 00;08;07;12

Max Stempora

So yeah, I think that's the benefit of a podcast for government, it's not just the high level points, more in the weeds, more details, that really make it a benefit.

00;08;07;14 - 00;08;25;03

Rob Trubia

Well, switching gears a little bit to looking ahead to season three, Max, I'm curious. Certainly I'm curious as as your host, is there anything in particular that you're looking forward to that you're hoping to get on the show, whether it might be a particular person or maybe just a mission from GSA?

00;08;25;05 - 00;08;52;02

Max Stempora

Sure. So it's interesting. Before we we started taping this morning, I went back and sort of looked at the numbers a little bit and and look at what we've done. Right. It's been two seasons. We've done 32 episodes. We've had a on over 52 guest right across those episodes. So I mean, we've touched on a lot of different topics, but I had no issue when I started brainstorming season three, like finding topics we could continue to talk about and things we haven't touched on.

00;08;52;05 - 00;09;11;00

Max Stempora

One of the ones that comes to my mind, think right off the bat is the Art and architecture program. And for those listeners who don't know, GSA sets aside a certain small percentage of every new major renovation or construction project for art in public spaces. Trying to do some research this morning. You know, how many pieces is it?

00;09;11;00 - 00;09;32;28

Max Stempora

How many buildings? Sorry, I couldn't find a definitive answer, so it'd be really cool to have the program and learn more about the process and even learn, you know, as a citizen, how do I see these? Right? Is there a place I can go? Is there a website so I can browse? Or I'd like to learn more about that, and another one that I'm really interested about having on.

00;09;32;28 - 00;09;52;10

Max Stempora

And I think a lot of people may not realize this. You know, GSA plays a role in movies, right? So if a building, a federal building is in movies, you know, how does that happen? Right? And that's a part of and function of GSA. So I want to learn more about that. And I think that would be a really interesting topic. I gues

00;09;52;10 - 00;10;02;05

Max Stempora

Rob, I'd be curious as a host. And again, you've been talking to people throughout the year. Is there anything that you've heard? You're like, Max, make sure you get this on the schedule.

00;10;02;07 - 00;10;29;26

Rob Trubia

You know, the two that you mentioned, I am actually genuinely excited about the, you know, GSA in the movies, if we want to call it that. The, Art in architecture program, for sure. I think, as a, you know, member of the Air National Guard and, a long career with the Air Force, aviation is near and dear to my heart, and I, I think I would love to see us talk about GSA aviation, which I had no idea existed, but not even know hardly anything about it.

00;10;29;29 - 00;10;37;08

Rob Trubia

But I know GSA has some role in federal aviation, so that certainly would be one I'd be interested in.

00;10;37;11 - 00;10;45;14

Max Stempora

Yeah, and I spoiler alert that's on the schedule, for early in this season. So, you're going to get your wish.

00;10;45;16 - 00;11;05;08

Rob Trubia

Well I'm glad to hear that. You said you have, no problem coming up with new topics, because I really enjoy doing this. And it's fun to think that we've got lots of stuff to explore. It's just it's so cool when you say, Rob, here's what we're doing. We're going to talk about, you know, GSA in the movies. And then it's my job to go research that learn about it.

00;11;05;11 - 00;11;24;26

Rob Trubia

Just get smart about it for a little bit and then smart enough to be able to at least ask some questions that people might be curious about as well. So it's a pretty neat opportunity just constantly be learning about new things. And, there's not another agency I'd rather be doing this for simply because it's so vast and there's so much opportunity.

00;11;25;05 - 00;11;36;17

Rob Trubia

Max, before we wrap up, I'm curious if you could just share a little bit more about how folks would maybe get in touch with us, learn a little bit more about the podcast, or maybe just even a little bit more about GSA.

00;11;36;19 - 00;11;55;23

Max Stempora

So, Rob, there are definitely a couple ways, you know, we're always looking for feedback. We're always looking for episode ideas. So I would point people to first, you know, to learn more about the podcast go to gsa.gov/podcast, right, all of our episodes in the back catalog are there. You can also, you know, send us an email at

00;11;55;23 - 00;12;17;17

Max Stempora

gsadoesthat@gsa.gov. If you have an episode idea or you just want to provide feedback on, you know, why aren't you doing this? Or can you, you know, maybe talk to these people, right. We love we love hearing from you and even social media, right. On all the major social media platforms. We're constantly posting, segments from the podcast, images, quotes, things like that.

00;12;17;24 - 00;12;31;16

Max Stempora

So go in, find us on social media. You can leave a comment and we'll see it and definitely get back in touch with you. But yeah, those are the three ways, you know, web, social, or sending us an email.

00;12;31;16 - 00;12;47;25

Rob Trubia

Great, no, I, I appreciate you sharing that. And we really do want everyone, you know, of course we want you to subscribe and listen, but we really would love to hear from you. We do hear once in a while. We'd like to hear more often. We'd love those emails and we'd love those. Just the comments on the show.

00;12;47;25 - 00;13;04;27

Rob Trubia

So that would be great. Well, Max, I think this has been a ton of fun for me. I hope you've enjoyed it. You know, I think it's going to be a great season three. So here's to 2025 and hopefully our best season ever. GSA Does That!? is a production of the US General Services Administration Office of Strategic Communication.

00;13;04;29 - 00;13;06;21

Rob Trubia

Thanks for listening.