NASA Major Management Challenges

NASA Major Management Challenges
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 8
Release: 1997
Genre:
ISBN:

NASA has identified the major overall challenge it faces: to manage a world-class research and development agency for aeronautics and space science and technology in an environment of diminishing resources. NASA has reduced its program plans substantially over the past several years to align them better with likely budgets. However, recent plans for balancing the federal budget may require NASA to absorb additional reductions. To help adjust its programs to likely budgets, NASA began a number of years ago to develop and refine a strategic plan and strategic planning process. As you have heard from prior witnesses in this series of hearings, key laws, such as the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 and the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990, are intended to provide a framework for congressional oversight of agency strategic planning and management to accomplish goals. NASA's strategic planning provides an appropriate starting point for discussing many of the management challenges the agency faces. Overall, we see 11 challenges for NASA management. These challenges fall into two categories: three that require immediate attention and eight that warrant 'watchful waiting,' or more routine, periodic oversight. A primary distinction between the two categories is that the management challenges in our first category may require congressional action to help resolve. At the Committee's request, we provided information several months ago on all 11 challenges. We understand that this information will be made part of the record of these hearings. Therefore, we will briefly summarize only a few of the challenges today.

NASA

NASA
Author: United States Accounting Office (GAO)
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 32
Release: 2018-05-29
Genre:
ISBN: 9781720396802

NASA: Major Management Challenges and Program Risks

NASA

NASA
Author: United States. General Accounting Office
Publisher:
Total Pages: 32
Release: 2001
Genre: Astronautics
ISBN:

Nasa

Nasa
Author: U S Government Accountability Office (G
Publisher: BiblioGov
Total Pages: 30
Release: 2013-06
Genre:
ISBN: 9781289048501

GAO reviewed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) fiscal year 2000 performance report to assess the agency's progress in achieving selected key outcomes important to NASA's mission. The selected key outcomes are to (1) expand scientific knowledge of the Earth system, (2) expand the commercial development of space, and (3) deploy and operate the International Space Station safely and cost effectively. NASA reported mixed progress in achieving these key outcomes. In general, NASA's strategies for achieving unmet performance targets for theses outcomes are clear and reasonable. NASA achieved most targets related to expanding knowledge of the Earth system. However, its progress in other areas was more limited. NASA has made improvements in its fiscal year 2000 performance report in comparison to its fiscal year 1999 performance report. Specifically, NASA describes its verification and validation efforts and discloses its data sources for each performance target. NASA's report partially addressed the governmentwide high-risk area of strategic human capital management but not the area of information security. GAO has previously found that NASA lacks an effective agencywide security program. NASA's report only addressed two of the three critical management challenges: (1) correcting weaknesses in contract management and (2) effectively implementing the faster, better, cheaper approach to space exploration projects. It did not address the challenge of controlling space station costs.

NASA status of plans for achieving key outcomes and addressing major management challenges.

NASA status of plans for achieving key outcomes and addressing major management challenges.
Author:
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
Total Pages: 37
Release: 2001
Genre:
ISBN: 1428948929

GPRA is intended to shift the focus of government decisionmaking, management, and accountability from activities and processes to the results and outcomes achieved by federal programs. New and valuable information on the plans, goals, and strategies of federal agencies has been provided since federal agencies began implementing GPRA. Under GPRA, annual performance plans are to clearly inform the Congress and the public of (1) the annual performance goals for agencies' major programs and activities, (2) the measures that will be used to gauge performance, (3) the strategies and resources required to achieve the performance goals, and (4) the procedures that will be used to verily and validate performance information. These annual plans, issued soon after transmittal of the President's budget, provide a direct linkage between an agency's longer-term goals and mission and day-to-day activities. Annual performance reports are to report subsequently on the degree to which performance goals were met The issuance of the agencies' performance reports, due by March 31 of each year, represents a new and potentially more substantive phase in the implementation of GPRA-the opportunity to assess federal agencies' actual performance for the prior fiscal year and to consider what steps are needed to improve performance, and reduce costs in the future. NASA's final performance plan was provided to the Congress on July 17, 2001.