2. Perspective of Program Management
from inside the Federal Government
• Discussion about program management
• From inside the federal government
– NASA
– White House
– Capitol Hill
• Perspective from Industry
3. Career Background
• Washington DC experience includes:
– 10 years Capitol Hill
• Including serving as Staff Director
• of Space & Aeronautics Subcommittee for House
– 5 years White House
• At Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
• Chief of Staff/General Counsel
• Then Deputy Director for Homeland & National Security
4. Career Background (cont)
• NASA
– Deputy Administrator
– Late 2005 to early 2009
• Potomac Institute for Policy Studies
– Senior Fellow focusing on cybersecurity
• DNI advisory group on biological sciences
• Serve on other advisory committees
– Commercial and non-profit
5. Career Background (cont)
• Dell
– Lead operational sector
– Known as Space and Earth Technologies Services
sector
– Focused on providing IT services as well as
scientific and engineering services to S&T agencies
• NASA
• Department of Commerce
• Department of Energy
6. Forces that impact Program
Management
• Encourage questions throughout the
discussion
• At NASA
– Internal Center dynamics
– Internal Mission Directorate dynamics and budget
pressures
– Internal Agency-level dynamics, budget
constraints, political issues
7. Washington DC Perspective
• Start with Capitol Hill
– Dialogue really kicks off with delivery of
President’s fiscal year budget submission
– Different types of discussions within the
authorization and appropriations committees
• Authorization
– For House, subcommittee dedicated to space
– In-depth hearings
– In-depth staff-level budget briefings
– Focus on near-term but also long-term
8. Capitol Hill -- authorization
• Authorization Committees
– Focus includes whether a program is hitting the
mark on original budget estimate
– Adequate budget reserves
– Level of overruns
– How are overruns impacting other programs
– Very serious overruns impact credibility
• Chronic, recurring problem can impact view of agency
• Relationship can turn very adversarial over time
9. Capitol Hill -- appropriations
• Appropriations Committee
– Shorter term focus: intent is to appropriate yearly
• Although long cycle of CRs and omnibus bills
– Limited pot of money across several agencies
– In 1990s, NASA housed in VA/HUD/IA
subcommittee
– Dynamics with floor amendments
• Budget-stripping amendments against NASA
• Either comfortable or nervous depending on where it
was going
10. Capitol Hill -- appropriations
• Floor amendments (cont)
– VA amendments
– HUD amendments
• Now housed in Commerce, Justice, Science
Appropriation Subcommittee
• Drivers
– Parochial interests
– Die-hard space lovers
– Die-hard space haters
11. Capitol Hill – case studies
• SSC
– Budget concerns
– Sentiment towards TX at that point
• ISS
– Floor vote: saved by one vote
– Whip effort for years after
– Messaging and coalitions
– Lessons learned from knowing Hill that well on
NASA/ISS
12. Capitol Hill – case studies
• Gravity Probe B
– Surprising ability to work the Hill
• Mentality
– What motivates?
– How handle crisis situations?
13. White House
• Higher level view
• Focus on future strategy of agency
• And things that will be either positives or
negatives for the Administration
• Ongoing discussions with OMB
– Participate in OMB Director’s review
– Provided perspective of other White House offices
– For me, this was homeland security
14. NASA – budget process
• In-depth internal budget reviews
– Mission directorates
– Mission support offices
– Centers
• Intensive interaction with OMB and OSTP
during budget season and more routine
through remainder of year
• Hill – hearings and in-depth staff reviews
15. NASA – A Suite
• What’s it like for senior leader at NASA?
– Back-to-back meetings: decision meetings
– Switch from topic to topic all day
– International meetings/domestic travel
– Meetings with White House or Hill
– Lot of balls in the air; many moving parts; and a
lot of external pressure
– And a deep appreciation for the people of NASA
• Dedication, passion, and love of America’s space
program
16. NASA – A Suite briefing
• You get called to brief a senior leader
• Next steps
– Know your audience
• Talk to leaders at Center or within Mission Directorate
• Senior leader’s style/pain points/focus areas
– Prepare backup slides but keep them to the side
– Be agile in presentation
17. NASA – A Suite briefing flow
– Tell a logical story that flows
• Prepare an outline first
– Think about elements (for a science project):
• Inception of program
• Goals
• Peer Review
• Timeline /Budget/Reserves
• Challenges
• Vulnerabilities
• Political landmines or dynamics
18. NASA – A Suite briefing
• Try your presentation out on others
– If the audience is non-technical then brief the
communications shop or someone similar
– See if your presentation makes sense and flows
• Monitor the reaction of the senior leader
– Puzzled expression; stop for questions
– If positive, invite that person out to see your work
when at the Center; develop a rapport
19. Industry Perspective
• Encourage cost realism in RFP process
– Can it really be delivered at that price?
– Best value could be rock bottom price
• Depends on what one is looking for
• Seeing government’s desire for more of a partner
relationship
– Particularly in IT: more cutting-edge/innovation
– Someone proactively identifying challenges and
solutions
– Not just reactive
