Information Resources Management-National Security and International
Affairs Issue Area Plan--Fiscal Years 1995-97 (Letter Report, 03/01/95,
GAO/IAP-95-4).

GAO provided information on its Information Resources
Management-National Security and International Affairs issue area plan
for fiscal years 1995 through 1997, focusing on strategic plans to: (1)
maximize federal agencies' investment in technology by effectively
implementing systems that will support operations and provide returns to
taxpayers; and (2) strengthen agencies' financial management practices.

GAO plans to: (1) improve the Department of Defense's (DOD) efficiency
through strategic information management; (2) identify savings
opportunities from consolidating or eliminating military installations,
activities, and systems; (3) ensure that systems improvement efforts are
technically sound and economically justified; (4) improve DOD accounting
systems; (5) build GAO capacity and technical capability to evaluate
embedded computer systems; (6) examine how DOD can improve its software
engineering practices; and (7) encourage the Department of State, Agency
for International Development, and National Aeronautics and Space
Administration to improve their strategic information management systems
and implement the best information resources management practices.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  IAP-95-4
     TITLE:  Information Resources Management-National Security and 
             International Affairs Issue Area Plan--Fiscal Years
             1995-97
      DATE:  03/01/95
   SUBJECT:  Strategic information systems planning
             Information resources management
             Information systems analysis
             Federal agency accounting systems
             Cost accounting
             Embedded computer systems
             Financial management
             International relations
             Defense cost control
             Defense operations
IDENTIFIER:  Defense Business Operations Fund
             F-22 Aircraft
             CIM
             NASA Earth Observing System Data Information System
             DOD Corporate Information Management Initiative
             AID Information Resources Management Program
             FTS 2000
             Federal Telecommunications System 2000
             
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Cover
================================================================ COVER


Accounting and Information Management Division

March 1995

INFORMATION RESOURCES
MANAGEMENT-NATIONAL
SECURITY AND
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
ISSUE AREA PLAN - FISCAL YEARS
1995-97

GAO/IAP-95-4



Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV

  DOD -
  AID -
  NASA -
  DBOF -

FOREWORD
============================================================ Chapter 0

The Information Resources Management-National Security and
International Affairs (IRM-NSIA) issue area is one of 35 issue areas
for which GAO periodically develops multi year strategic plans. 
Relying heavily on input from congressional committees, as well as
industry, academia, and agency officials and other experts, GAO
develops strategic plans to ensure that our resources are focused on
the most important concerns of the Congress. 

For each issue area, GAO's strategic plan describes the significance
of the issues, our objectives, and the focus of our work.  GAO's goal
is to serve as a source of timely, accurate information and unbiased
analysis for decisionmakers in the Congress and executive agencies. 
Our work results in products such as reports, briefings, and
testimonies. 

The IRM-NSIA issue area covers information management and technology
issues within the Department of Defense (DOD), National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA), the State Department, and the Agency
for International Development (AID).  These agencies spend about $40
billion annually--75 percent of the federal government's expenditure
for computers and software--for everything from automated business
and financial systems to computer systems embedded in space and
weapons materials. 

Our work covers a broad spectrum.  For example, we focus on (1)
business and financial systems, such as those used to manage DOD's
nearly $100 billion inventory, maintain its weapons systems, or pay
its 6 million military, civilian, and retired personnel; (2) the
operation of the $77 billion Defense Business Operations Fund (DBOF),
a key initiative to identify and reduce infrastructure costs; and (3)
highly sophisticated computer systems, such as those used for the Air
Force's F-22 fighter aircraft or NASA's Earth Observing System Data
and Information System.  We also examine how the State Department
manages its financial and information management resources. 

GAO's goals in the IRM-NSIA issue area are to help these agencies (1)
maximize their investment in technology by effectively implementing
systems that will support and streamline operations and provide a
high rate of return to the taxpayer and (2) strengthen their
financial management practices.  The principal issues in the IRM-NSIA
issue area are

  -- development of DOD's information infrastructure;

  -- management, development, and operation of DOD's automated
     business systems;

  -- improvement of DOD's financial management;

  -- design, development, operation, and support of computers and
     software embedded in weapons and command/control systems; and

  -- strategic information management planning and selected
     automation projects at NASA, State, and AID. 

In the pages that follow, we describe our key planned work on these
issues. 

Because events may significantly affect even the best of plans, our
planning process allows for updating the plan and responding quickly
to emerging issues.  If you have any questions or suggestions about
this plan, please call me at (202) 512-6240. 

Jack L.  Brock, Jr.
Director
Information Resources Management -
 National Security and International Affairs


CONTENTS
============================================================ Chapter 1


   FOREWORD
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:1

1


   TABLE I:  KEY ISSUES
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:2

4


   TABLE II:  PLANNED MAJOR WORK
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:3

6


   TABLE III:  GAO CONTACTS
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:4

7


TABLE I:  KEY ISSUES
============================================================ Chapter 2

Issue                                   Significance
--------------------------------------  ----------------------------------------
Defense information infrastructure:     DOD spends over $10 billion annually for
How can DOD develop an information      computer and communication
infrastructure that adequately          infrastructure needed to support and
supports its operations and             better integrate the Department's
effectively uses its resources and      thousands of information systems. A
technology?                             sound information infrastructure is
                                        essential if DOD is to effectively use
                                        technology to improve operations.
                                        However, its efforts to implement an
                                        information infrastructure have been
                                        frustrated by ineffective DOD-wide
                                        strategic information management
                                        planning and technical policy
                                        implementation.

Defense business systems: What should   DOD spends over $9 billion annually to
be done to improve the management,      develop and operate thousands of
development, and operation of DOD's     redundant, overlapping, and incompatible
business systems?                       business systems. It needs better
                                        business systems to provide credible
                                        information for supporting its business
                                        functions.

Defense financial management: How can   Widespread financial management
DOD's financial management be improved  weaknesses have resulted in DOD being
to provide the type of information      unable to accurately account for
needed to effectively run the           billions of dollars. It continues to
department?                             struggle with implementing a viable
                                        financial management environment, which
                                        is having a crippling effect on
                                        management's ability to adequately
                                        monitor operations.

Defense weapons systems: How can DOD    DOD spends about $20 billion annually on
more effectively design, develop,       computers and software to enhance the
operate, and support its embedded       capability of its sophisticated and
computer systems?                       complex weapons systems. There are
                                        nearly 100 major systems under
                                        development and many more in operation
                                        that all depend on software. However, it
                                        has had serious problems developing,
                                        acquiring, and supporting its embedded
                                        systems. Billions of dollars in
                                        development and support costs could be
                                        saved if the agency could improve its
                                        software engineering processes.

Other issues: How can State, AID, and   State, AID, and NASA need to manage
NASA improve their strategic planning   their operations strategically, taking
and management of information           advantage of information technologies
resources, technology, and financial    where appropriate. These agencies should
systems?                                employ practices that can help improve
                                        their performance, productivity, and
                                        quality of service.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Objectives                           Focus of work
-----------------------------------  -------------------------------------------
Improve DOD's ability to achieve     ï¿½ Strategic information management and
mission goals, downsize, and reduce  corporate information management (CIM)
costs through more effective
strategic information management,    ï¿½ "Migration" strategy
planning, and implementation of
management initiatives.              ï¿½ The Defense Information Systems Agency's
                                     efforts to consolidate data processing and
Identify opportunities for savings   telecommunications
from consolidating or eliminating
installations, activities, and       ï¿½ DOD's electronic data interchange
systems.                             efforts

                                     ï¿½ Budget/investment analysis

Ensure that improvement efforts for  ï¿½ Implementation of standard systems for
information systems are technically  logistics and transportation
sound and economically justified.
                                     ï¿½ Selected systems modernization
Improve management, performance,
and systems support and identify     ï¿½ Budget investment/analysis
opportunities for savings for key
functional areas.

Enhance DOD's efforts to develop     ï¿½ DBOF operations
integrated budget and accounting
systems as well as improved cost     ï¿½ Unmatched disbursements
accounting systems.
                                     ï¿½ Implementation of standard financial
Identify actions DOD should take to  systems
improve existing systems' accuracy
and reliability and identify         ï¿½ Defense Finance and Accounting Service
opportunities for savings through
management improvements.

Build GAO's capacity and technical   ï¿½ Embedded systems methodology
capability to evaluate embedded
computer systems.                    ï¿½ Joint AIMD-NSIAD reviews of computer-and
                                     software-intensive weapon systems
Identify and assess recurring or
systemic embedded computer system    ï¿½ Software engineering processes
development, acquisition, and
support problems and opportunities   ï¿½ Cross-cutting technical issues
for savings.
                                     ï¿½ Budget/investment analysis
Examine how DOD can improve its
software engineering processes to
reduce costs and improve quality.

Recommend ways for State, AID, and   ï¿½ NASA strategic information management
NASA to improve their strategic
planning and management of           ï¿½ Selected NASA systems and technology
information resources, technology,
and financial systems.               ï¿½ State and AID strategic information
                                     management
Encourage State, AID, and NASA to
implement IRM "best" practices.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TABLE II:  PLANNED MAJOR WORK
============================================================ Chapter 3

Issue                          Planned Major Job Starts
-----------------------------  -------------------------------------------------
Defense information            ï¿½CIM implementation issues
infrastructure
                               ï¿½Viability of DOD's migratory systems strategy

                               ï¿½Electronic commerce/electronic data interchange
                               implementation

                               ï¿½DOD's information technology investment
                               strategy

                               ï¿½DOD telecommunications/global command and
                               control issues

Defense business systems       ï¿½DOD's maintenance systems modernization

                               ï¿½DOD's materiel management systems modernization

                               ï¿½DOD's transportation systems modernization

                               ï¿½Information technology budget analyses

Defense financial management   ï¿½Pricing of DBOF services

                               ï¿½DOD's efforts to identify and reduce cost of
                               DBOF operations

                               ï¿½Reengineering the defense disbursement process

                               ï¿½Defense Finance & Accounting Service
                               consolidation

                               ï¿½Adequacy of DFAS debt management system

Defense weapons systems        ï¿½Methodology for assessing embedded systems

                               ï¿½Assessment of selected Air Force systems/
                               issues

                               ï¿½Evaluation of software development activities
                               and processes

                               ï¿½Assessment of selected Navy systems/issues

                               ï¿½Assessment of selected Army systems/issues

Other issue area work          ï¿½NASA's Earth Observing System Data and
                               Information System

                               ï¿½NASA information resource management

                               ï¿½State Department and AID IRM issues

                               ï¿½Post FTS 2000 Issues
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TABLE III:  GAO CONTACTS
============================================================ Chapter 4


      DIRECTOR
-------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 4:0.1

Jack Brock (202) 512-6240


      ASSISTANT DIRECTORS
-------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 4:0.2

Patricia Daly
John DeFerrari
Franklin Deffer
Larry Logsdon
Joseph McDermott
Gregory Pugnetti
John Reifsnyder
Darby Smith
John Stephenson
Ernst Stockel
Carl Urie

*** End of document. ***