Defense Department file photo
Next Defense Chief Should Make Deputy a Real Manager, Says Business Board
Transition advice from industry chieftains would also elevate Pentagon comptroller.
Regardless of the outcome of the upcoming presidential election, the Defense secretary sworn in after Jan. 20 should curb overhead, elevate the department’s comptroller and make his or her deputy a true manager, according to presidential transition recommendations released Tuesday by the Defense Industry Board.
The body of 26 industry chieftains created in 2002 issued a report designed to bring private-sector management techniques to what chairman Michael Beyer, CEO of Dumbarton Strategies LLC, called “the largest organization in the world.”
Beginning with letters addressed to the transition team and future top Pentagon appointees, the board counseled that “even before the election, with guidance from the presidential candidate, the transition team should work with the secretary designee to develop guidance reflecting the outcomes sought in the first term.”
That guidance will shape “candidate search criteria for key DoD positions,” the report said, including: deputy secretary as Chief Management Officer; three service secretaries; five undersecretaries (for personnel and readiness; acquisition, technology and logistics; chief financial officer/comptroller; policy; and intelligence); deputy chief management officer; principal deputy for acquisition, technology and logistics; and general counsel.
The argument for making the deputy secretary a more active manager stems from the observation that the present-day version is one who spends “significant time away from the Pentagon, either ‘filling in’ for the secretary or on matters requiring coordination with other agencies, international partners or the White House,” the report said. “The adverse consequence of this has been insufficient attention paid to the important primary function of managing the department.”
Similarly, the current comptroller/undersecretary’s post should be enhanced with the chief financial officer title to reflect the “importance of the CFO role.” The successful candidate should be drawn from either the financial industry (to include accounting), or from persons with significant corporate CFO or board-level audit committee experience, the industry board added.
In comments long familiar, the board warned that “excessive bureaucracy inhibits rapid decision making, at a time when speed is essential in a world of emerging peers.” Reducing red tape will require a renewed focus on cutting overhead, the industry members said.
The board recommended that the transition team decide which members of the outgoing administration should stay on temporarily and permanently, and strive to recruit its management and policy teams simultaneously, so as to have both confirmed and on the job as soon as possible.