Navy's Financial Accountability | Transforming Federal Agencies | DHS Procurement Innovation Lab

October 13, 2024

Presented by IBM

Navy's Path to Financial Accountability: Overcoming Barriers and Driving Reform

Russell Rumbaugh, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management and Comptroller, discusses the Marine Corps' successful audit and the broader challenges facing the Navy as it strives for a clean audit opinion. He emphasizes that strong leadership was a key factor in the Marine Corps' achievement, with two consecutive Commandants prioritizing the audit and linking it directly to warfighting readiness. This focus on leadership has helped foster a culture where the importance of audits is widely recognized. However, Rumbaugh acknowledged that the Navy still faces significant hurdles due to entrenched “functional stove pipes,” which divide responsibilities and make it difficult to achieve a department-wide audit. These siloed structures not only complicate audits but also reduce financial efficiency and impact readiness. While the Navy is transitioning to modern financial management systems, Rumbaugh pointed out that technology alone won't solve the problem. True progress will require breaking down organizational barriers and shifting the culture toward greater accountability and collaboration across departments. 

Key Takeaways:

Transforming Federal Agencies with AI: Opportunities and Strategies

Paul Dommel, Partner, Federal Tax and Finance Consulting at IBM discusses the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) across federal agencies. AI is being leveraged in three primary areas: enhancing citizen interactions, optimizing mission-driven processes and improving back-office functions. Dommel highlights successful use cases, such as using AI and automation to drastically reduce the time for processing documents at the Department of Veterans Affairs from 30 days to 30 minutes. This shift not only accelerates service delivery but also repositions staff to more strategic roles. He emphasizes that AI should not replace human jobs but rather augment them, allowing employees to focus on higher-value tasks. Dommel also advises agencies to align AI implementations with their mission objectives, performance challenges and cost-reduction goals to ensure that AI investments are impactful and effective.

Key Takeaways:

1. AI is being utilized to enhance citizen services, streamline mission processes, and improve back-office functions, leading to significant efficiency gains.
   
   
2.  The Department of Veterans Affairs' use of AI to expedite document processing demonstrates AI’s potential to transform government operations and staff roles.
   
   
3.  Agencies should align AI strategies with their core mission and performance challenges, focusing on improving service delivery and reducing operational costs.

Phase 3 of Department of Homeland Security's Procurement Innovation Lab

Scott Simpson, Digital Transformation Lead at the Department of Homeland Security, outlines the Phase 3 initiative within the Procurement Innovation Lab (PIL). This phase shifts the emphasis from individual procurements to transforming the broader procurement culture within DHS. The goal is to move from a risk-averse mindset to one that embraces risk management through continuous, on-the-job training and cultural change. Simpson describes how the PIL is working to build confidence among procurement professionals by providing actionable feedback and fostering a culture of learning and innovation. Regular feedback sessions and a focus on relationships with vendors are key components of this cultural shift. The lab aims to ensure that procurement practices evolve to better meet the needs of both the agency and its external partners.

Key Takeaways:

1. Phase Three of the PIL focuses on changing the procurement culture from risk avoidance to proactive risk management.
   
   
2. Providing detailed feedback and fostering a positive environment boosts confidence among procurement teams and encourages innovative practices.
   
   
3. The PIL emphasizes continuous learning and relationship-building with vendors to enhance procurement processes and performance over time.