Modernization begins at home, says new FAS chief

The General Services Administration's new Federal Acquisition Service commissioner said he will work to make modernized back office systems his legacy at the agency.

"There are 170 systems at FAS," said FAS Commissioner Alan Thomas at a Nov. 14 FedScoop event. "That's a big number. That's a system for every 20 people" at the agency, he said.

Thomas has been on the job for six months, since the top FAS job was changed from a career post to a political appointment. The previous commissioner and his deputy resigned in the wake of the change.

Thomas came to the post with experience as a contractor and as a program analyst in the office of the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics.

Modernizing back office technology to support FAS employees and allow vendors easier access to contracting and management systems is "a payment back to the workforce," said Thomas.

Thomas said he is nearing completion of a nationwide tour of the GSA's 11 regional offices, along with FAS Deputy Commissioner Mary Davie, to get input on the needs and concerns there. His goal since taking on the new job was to visit all the offices by Thanksgiving. Thomas said his last trip is slated for Philadelphia only days before the holiday.

Modernizing agency systems, he said, was a big topic of discussion in the regions. Personnel in those offices voiced some frustrations with working with some of the aging back-office IT.

Thomas is also watching the Modernizing Government Technology Act heading to passage as part of the final National Defense Authorization Act. The act, if passed and funded, "will be great," Thomas told FCW in an interview after his presentation.

"One of the biggest hurdles for agencies is they have to keep spending to keep their lights on," he said. The MGT Act would "be a real boon" to federal agencies providing actual working capital funds for improving their IT systems.

Thomas said in his presentation that he has also been at work with TTS chief Rob Cook integrating that organization into FAS. Thomas said there wasn't much detail in the initial order to integrate TTS into FAS and it was basically a "lift and shift."

Since the move, Thomas said FAS and TTS have been working with 30-day sprints and several working groups to hammer out recommendations on how to most efficiently integrate the operations, as well as leverage their relative capabilities. Working groups, he said, addressed areas such as procurement, financing and cultural issues.

Those sprints were concluded in August and the agency is developing guidance based on them, he said.