Each of the above goals has distinctive objectives. These are very crucial objectives because using these tools; DFAS will accomplish its strategic goals. During the process, DFAS organizational scorecards will be continuously examined and revised as missions’ and goals’ priorities amended. External influences and opportunities World events such as the Global War on Terror such as Afghanistan and Iraq war, increasing competition in the financial services sector and changing technological security requirements for the customers will require DFAS to maintain agility and anticipate customer needs.
As military operational tempo increases, DFAS must increase support to the customers but with fewer resources’ tolerance for poor quality services decreases. DFAS will need to respond to these changing demands and expectations. As technology becomes more advanced and available, DFAS will need to develop improved security and privacy measures for the customers’ personal and financial information.
In responding to this changing global environment and increased competition, DFAS will have the opportunity to improve operational support to the warfighters. Despite the increased demands, limited resources and changing world events, DFAS needs to continue to post break-through results. Customers and employee satisfaction will continue to improve. DFAS customers’ requirements, demands and wants will develop and evolve. As DFAS exceeds its basic service goals, customer expectations will increase, and it will need to be ready to deliver the next generation of financial services and products. As a result, DFAS will have the opportunity to better anticipate customer needs and proactively deliver additional value-added services.
Refining Strategic Vision DFAS’ vision is to provide best values services to the customers by becoming a world-class finance and accounting organization. As DFAS reach for that vision, it will establish objectives and milestones that enable DFAS to measure and evaluate its progress. In addition, it will compare itself to other best of breed finance and accounting services, private and public to ensure that it is in fact the best value for its customers.
Achieving its vision is dependent on continual improvements of DFAS value proportion in the core functions of its business: paying people, paying vendors and accounting for business events. As the war on terrorism drags on, DFAS must be informed by the expected changes in its business. Over the next 8-10 years, DFAS expects the following shifts in its business environment and the way DFAS delivers services.
First, DFAS customer profile evolving and so will DFAS: DFAS customers will demand improved quality for reduced costs. The customer base will need to expand to include other federal agencies and/or state & local governments. Second, DFAS will better able to present the full spectrum of customer offerings & deliver tailored customer solutions. DFAS will establish a culture committed to customer service, operational excellence, advancement of DFAS employees and professionalism.
Third, As DFAS become an advisor to its customers, it will more actively partner with them to better understand, anticipate and meet their requirements. DFAS will deal directly with decision-makers, customer management teams, and warfighters to provide high-value and affordable solutions that will help achieve key objectives. Customers wants and needs For DFAS to identify its strategic priorities, it must have a through understanding of DFAS from its customers’ point of view. The value chain is an excellent tool for this analysis. The value chain provides an external perspective of DFAS’ competitive position. This approach starts by determining its customers and their priorities and then how the business is designed to meet customers; requirements.
DFAS is in business to deliver high-value outcomes to its customers and to do this; DFAS must first identify its customers and determine what they want. DFAS has divided the customer base into two categories: individual and organizational. The individual customers are DFAS’ first-line payment recipients and the organizational customers refer to the DFAS’ partners in servicing those payments recipients.
As DFAS transforms over the next 10 years, DFAS evolution will be in phases. During the next phase of transformation, DFAS will focus on achieving five strategic targets that have been identified based on what DFAS have heard from the customers, legislative and regulatory organizations, and their own internal evaluation. In identifying the agency’s five strategic targets, DFAS has considered three timeframes. DFAS have evaluated where DFAS today, developed plans that prepares DFAS for its near term future, and ensured that DFAS will be positioned for where it needs to be in their long-term future. The five targets are to: a. Pay Service Members what they are entitled to on the scheduled pay date b. Implement electronic commerce for all Commercial Pay processing
c. Receive an Unqualified Audit Opinion on the FY2011 Financial Statements d. Develop a corporate capability to deliver client-unique business intelligence e. Retain, recruit and train a DFAS work force capable of developing and implement the DFAS strategy The first three targets focus on achieving world-class operations in our major business lines-paying people, paying vendors and accounting for events. Without achieving these world-class capabilities, DFAS cannot provide its customers more innovative and enhanced services and solutions. Targets four and five are focused on enhancing DFAS’ core competencies. These competencies are the foundation upon which DFAS core competencies. These competencies are the foundation upon which DFAS will achieve the previous three targets and become a trusted, innovative financial partner.
Pay Services Members what they are entitled Primary prerequisite for a world-class finance and accounting organization is the ability to pay customers what they are entitled to on the scheduled pay date. By focusing on the quality and accuracy of on-time payments, DFAS will identify and correct pay inaccuracies, which cannot be corrected in advance of the payment. This target will require a seven-part process:
1) Work with process partners to improve the timeliness and quality of incoming data. 2) Detect errors early and correct identified problems before pay date 3) Develop error prevention procedures to isolate the cause and effect 4) Work the system to make sure DFAS have system efficiencies and data integrity5) Make the errors transparent to the customer This concept will incorporate performance intelligence metrics, which include customer intelligence, quality intelligence and process intelligence. Accomplishing the above process is critical to meeting the agency goal of providing world-class customer service. Success dependence on the collective efforts of not only agency assets within the areas of military pay, policy, acquisition management, corporate communications, and technology services, bust also service personnel, finance and communication professionals.
If DFAS fails on this initiative, it may create financial hardships for our military members and their families. Failure to meet this mission adversely affects the readiness and morale of America’s military forces. It is a national security matters. The process will benefit to customers to receive accurate and timely, receive advance notice that a pay inaccuracy exist and is being resolved immediately, and enhance communication with process partners. Implement Electronic Commerce for Commercial pay processing
The electronic commerce goal is to move from a paper-based environment where transactions are entered multiple times, to an electronic environment where transactions are entered once by the source and transmitted systematically to all process partners. This goal will enable DFAS to process transactions in a more timely, accurate and efficient manner. Implementing these tools will improve the process through:
1) Single source entry- results in improved data accuracy; elimination of redundant data entry; and reduction in unmatched transactions.
2) Electronic transaction of data- results in lower postage, handling and document management costs; reduction of lost or misplaced documents; and more ttimely availability of data
3) Electronic storage of data-provides capability to view and track transactions throughout the process; results in fewer customer service calls for transaction status.
Accomplishing this strategic goal enhances DFAS’ ability to provide services at a competitive price and therefore remain a provider of choice. Achieving this goal requires a cooperative effort between DFAS, its service and industry partners. These services must develop a deployment strategy to ensure their members are properly trained and are using available tools. Equally important is the effort the services must make in working towards standardization of processes an business rules. Industry must comply with electronic invoicing and payment mandates. Contractors and vendors must register in the central contractors’ registry to provide electronic file transfer (EFT) payment routing information and must submit invoices electronically using approved methods.
The primary benefit to DFAS customers is that lower transaction processing costs, reduced interest penalties, and increased discount earned will result in reduction customers’ cost. Receive an Unqualified Audit Opinion on the FY 2007 Financial Statements Audited financial statements are expected to provide timely, reliable and useful information to the DoD program managers, congress, and the public. They facilitate effective allocation of resources and enhanced assessment of management performance and stewardship. Receiving an unqualified opinion provides assurance that every line on the financial statements has reliable data that are traceable to source records and were posted in accordance with laws and regulations.
The target is to deliver FY2009 financial statements capable of receiving an unqualified audit opinion. DFAS goal is to establish a reliable and repeatable end-to-end process to produce statements that contain timely, reliable and useful information-statements that can and will be used to manage the Department. The primary impact on DFAS customers will be the provision of enhanced business intelligence for DFAS customers and lay foundation for accumulating reliable cost information the Secretary of Defense wants to run the Department in a business-like fashion. Develop a Corporate Capability to Deliver Client Unique Business Intelligence
This strategic target delivers seemliness, integrated business intelligence capability to the customer base. This effort will also result in making delivery of customer-unique business intelligence solutions, a core competency within DFAS. The end state of the target is to move beyond the DFAS success in place today (e.g. the Army Shared Knowledge-Financial Management Dashboard, the Business of DFAS Dashboard, etc. are all of them are underdevelopment. These are web based near real time access to dynamic information. Successful integration of business intelligence methods will contribute to the vision of being a world-class provider of finance and accounting services and trusted, innovative financial partner.
The development of an integrated of an integrated and robust DFAS business intelligence capability allows DFAS customers to receive and conduct better enterprise analysis. This will enable the customers to combine financial and non-financial information in an enterprise-wide central repository, accessible via the customer’s performance management system. Furthermore, it improves availability of relevant, consistent, integrated information. This will be integrated and fit onto the net-centric vision of the business enterprise Architecture and will potentially impact everyone who deals with financial and accounting data. A highly scalable business intelligence capability will make consistent information visible, in a secure environment, to any authorized user in the DoD enterprise.
Retain, Recruit, and Train a DFAS work force The future of DFAS depends on its ability to recruit, train, and retain a dedicated team capable of implementing the DFAS strategy and achieving its mission. This target provides a foundation for achieving the previous targets by developing robust programs to attract, develop, and retain and support the best talented possible, because the cornerstone of any service-based organization is superior people and leadership. For DFAS to deliver excellent service to the customers, DFAS must focus our efforts toward meeting their needs. To address the wants and needs of the customers, remain competitive and thrive as an organization, DFAS must dedicate resource to develop the people, processes and system necessary to accomplish the strategic targets and provide the customers with the greatest solution possible.
