Page 24 - FCW, September/October 2020

IT MODERNIZATION
Executive Viewpoint
A conversation with
MARIA ROAT
MARIA ROAT
Deputy Administrator and Deputy Federal CIO, Office of E-Government and IT, Office of Management and Budget
The deputy federal CIO talks about how OMB develops guidance and works with the CIO Council to support modernization efforts
What role does OMB play in helping agencies achieve their modernization goals?
OMB tries to make sure that policies and guidance are flexible enough
that agencies can embrace emerging technologies while also securely managing ongoing modernization initiatives.
There is a strong relationship within the CIO Council to provide feedback on those policies as they are being developed to make sure that they’re useful and that they actually help the CIOs.
Over the last two years, the Federal CIO team at OMB updated policies
and guidance to eliminate barriers to modernization and align the guidance with broader strategic goals. They eliminated many of the old requirements, including reporting requirements that weren’t necessary or did not add value.
What are some of the top challenges agencies face in achieving those goals?
It is a big challenge to try to drive long- term modernization and not have the funding to sustain multi-year initiatives.
Agency CIOs are often forced to do as much as they can one year, a little bit the next year and then maybe less than they want the following year because the CIO doesn’t have predictable, consistent levels of funding for modernization. A two- or three-year modernization plan turns into four or five years, or sometimes never gets started.
The Modernizing Government Technology Act provides for two programs that help with long-term, multi- year modernization: the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) and IT working capital funds (IT WCF). The
TMF has received more than $550 million in proposals and funded $116 million and 10 modernization projects so far. It helps agencies through the transition until they turn off the old system and bring the new online.
Agency IT WCFs give the CIOs
the authority and ability to manage the funding over a multi-year period, resulting in the ability to sustain long- term initiatives without reliance on unpredictable funding levels.
How is the pandemic helping or hindering efforts to modernize? There was no precedent for the government moving out of the office and working from home at scale. It involved managing the workforce while you’re simultaneously building new capabilities in response to new legislation. The CIOs turned around solutions such as new public-facing portals in a week.
The CIOs were able to execute quickly because there was a lot of support
for rapid acquisitions. Thanks to a partnership between the CIOs, senior procurement executives, the CFOs and the General Services Administration, CIOs were able to move very fast.
I want to give a shout-out to the CIO Council for accelerating its work in using modern technology for mission continuity. During the pandemic, we had daily standup meetings, and we highlighted some long-term strategic challenges we should take on as a council. The CIO Council’s ability to work together collaboratively has a considerable positive impact.
This interview continues at Carah.io/Roat-OMB.
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