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Business Modernization: Some Progress Made toward Implementing GAO Recommendations Related to NASA's Integrated Financial Management Program

GAO-05-799R Published: Sep 09, 2005. Publicly Released: Oct 27, 2005.
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Highlights

As we and others have reported in the past, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has fundamental problems with its financial management operations that undermine its external financial reporting ability and thwart its efforts to effectively manage and oversee its major programs. In April 2000, NASA began addressing many of its financial and management challenges through its effort to implement a new integrated financial management system, known as the Integrated Financial Management Program (IFMP), which NASA expects to complete in fiscal year 2008. However, in April and November 2003--3 years into the IFMP implementation effort and with significant investment already made in the program--we issued a series of four reports that detailed weaknesses in NASA's acquisition and implementation strategy for IFMP. Specifically, we reported that NASA had not followed key best practices for acquiring and implementing IFMP and, therefore, was at risk of making a substantial investment in a financial management system that would fall far short of its stated goal of providing meaningful, reliable, and timely information to support effective day-to-day program management and external financial reporting. As part of the four reports we issued on IFMP, we made 45 recommendations in the following areas: system component integration, enterprise architecture development and use, risk mitigation, system requirements definition, requirements management and testing, external financial reporting, and program cost and schedule control. Due to continued interest in ensuring that NASA is taking the necessary actions to successfully implement IFMP, Congress asked us to assess the extent to which NASA has adopted the recommendations we made in our April and November 2003 reports.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Given the significance of the remaining problems with IFMP, the NASA Administrator should direct the IFMP Program Executive Officer to develop an integrated enterprise master schedule and milestones in coordination with the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of the Chief Engineer, and the Program Analysis and Evaluation Office. The schedule, developed in the context of modernized business processes and improved operations, should include the improvement activities and plans already in place, dates for completion, how progress will be measured, and clear accountability for each action not completed in a timely and effective manner.
Closed – Not Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

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Topics

Contract administrationEvaluation methodsFederal procurementFinancial management systemsInformation resources managementInternal controlsManagement information systemsProcurement planningProgram managementReporting requirementsRisk managementStrategic information systems planningSystems analysisSystems designComponent-based software engineering