Page 23 - FCW, May 2017

New guidance advises agencies to use shared services and GWACs — and IT wherever possible — in their strategies for restructuring themselves
BY MARK ROCKWELL AND ADAM MAZMANIAN
OMB’s guidance stresses some of the same agency IT and service profi- ciency programs that had been part of the Obama administration’s efforts to tame government redundancies and inefficiencies.
Former U.S. CIO Tony Scott told FCW that the guidance “seems to pick up on many of the same themes we worked on earlier, especially around greater use of shared services and modernizing legacy systems and processes.”
The plan does away with FedStat and
strategic reviews, Scott said, adding that he was sorry to see them go because they made it easier to speak with senior federal executives “in a very thoughtful and useful way.”
He also said the guidance glides over a big issue. “One of the problems with this approach is that it presumes most of the issues can be solved by doing things dif- ferently at agencies or by having higher- performing federal employees, and [it] seems to ignore the obvious questions about where law, legislative and gover-
nance processes can be changed to also improve outcomes,” Scott said.
Mulvaney, who was one of the most vociferously anti-debt members of the House Republican caucus, agreed that congressional support is needed for some of the government’s reorganiza- tion activities.
“There will be certain things for which we will need the legislative authority,” he said. “We don’t know what those are yet because we don’t know what the final plan looks like, but certainly, we’re
Timeline for workforce reductions and comprehensive reforms
FY19 budget process
Congressional consideration of budget and legislative proposals
Full implementation
of actions within administration authority
Regular performance tracking
Governmentwide reform plan
Reform proposals in president’s FY19 budget
President’s management agenda/cross- agency priority goals
Agency reform proposals
in strategic plans and human capital plans (including agency priority goals)
Additional immediate actions (following meetings with OMB)
Source: Office of Management and Budget
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