Original Broadcast Date: 05/17/2026
Presented by EY
Lieutenant General Mark Simerly says the Defense Logistics Agency is moving aggressively to transform itself so it can keep pace with the rapidly evolving joint force and the demands of future warfare. During an interview on Fed Gov Today, Simerly outlines a broad modernization strategy centered on four major priorities: data integration, divesting legacy systems, mission reassessment and reviewing DLA’s global infrastructure footprint.
Simerly explains that transformation is necessary because every branch of the military is changing quickly to prepare for future operational challenges. Combatant commands are also restructuring and updating plans, and he says DLA cannot afford to fall behind.
“The agency has to be transforming at the pace of the rest of the joint force,” Simerly says.
He describes the effort as comprehensive, extending beyond technology alone. DLA’s approach includes changes involving people, operational precision, organizational posture and partnerships across the defense enterprise.
At the center of the transformation is data. Simerly calls data DLA’s “most decisive commodity” and says one of the agency’s biggest challenges is that valuable information remains trapped in siloed and outdated systems.
DLA produces enormous amounts of information every day, but Simerly explains that the agency also depends heavily on data from the military services. That makes interoperability critical. The goal now is to create an ecosystem where data can move continuously and automatically between organizations instead of relying on manual spreadsheet exchanges and disconnected systems.
Simerly says DLA originally believed technology itself would be the greatest challenge. Instead, he explains the real obstacles are procedural and cultural.
“The technology has come on board,” Simerly says. “It’s now the procedural aspect and the human aspect of interoperability that we have to drive change in.”
To support that effort, DLA is not only modernizing systems but also training its workforce to use advanced analytical tools effectively. Simerly emphasizes that building a modern data environment requires both technical upgrades and organizational buy-in from employees and partner organizations alike.
Another major part of the transformation effort involves eliminating legacy systems that limit visibility and data accessibility. Simerly acknowledges DLA carries significant “legacy debt” from decades of automation systems that no longer support the speed and flexibility modern operations require.
The agency is reducing the number of systems it operates while modernizing its broader information technology environment. Simerly points to
Those modernization efforts also support another important objective: improving DLA’s audit readiness and supply chain forecasting capabilities. Simerly explains that older processes often depended heavily on historical demand data and manual information sharing. Modern systems now allow DLA to optimize supply chains and better anticipate future operational requirements.
Beyond technology modernization, DLA is also reevaluating its missions and priorities. Simerly says the agency continually examines whether all of its responsibilities still align with its role as the Defense Department’s combat support agency. Some missions that once made sense may no longer fit current national defense priorities, he explains.
That reassessment also extends to DLA’s worldwide infrastructure footprint. The agency operates globally, including hundreds of fuel support sites and more than two dozen distribution warehouses. Simerly says many of those locations were established for legacy reasons and now require reevaluation against the National Defense Strategy and evolving operational priorities.
DLA is now conducting continuous reviews of where its assets are positioned and whether those locations best support combatant commands and military services. The process includes evaluating risks, readiness requirements and geographic priorities such as support for Indo-Pacific operations and homeland defense missions.
Importantly, Simerly says these reviews are no longer occasional exercises. Instead, DLA is institutionalizing continuous reassessment across the organization to ensure the agency remains adaptable long after current leadership transitions.
“We’re constantly reviewing not only this question about infrastructure, but what it is that we do and how well we’re organized to meet our missions and our responsibilities to the warfighter,” Simerly says.
Throughout the discussion, Simerly presents DLA’s transformation as more than a technology upgrade. He describes it as a long-term operational shift designed to ensure the agency can support a rapidly modernizing military force while remaining agile, interoperable and ready for future challenges across the globe.