Operation CATTLE DRIVE
UNSECNAV Memo - Publish Date: 12/02/20
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The objective of Operation CATTLE DRIVE is to accelerate the modernization and transformation of our IT capabilities by ensuring that decisions made to sunset or rationalize unneeded, obsolete, unproductive, insecure, and un-auditable IT systems and applications are realized.
MEMORANDUM FOR DISTRIBUTION
Subj: OPERATION CATTLE DRIVE
The Department of the Navy (DON) maintains an excessive number of Information Technology (IT) systems, networks, and applications in an overly complex architecture, which affects the Department’s ability to transform operations and remain agile in responding to and gaining a competitive edge over our adversaries. The abundance and variation of these IT capabilities creates unnecessary complexity that hinders our ability to achieve an advantage by perpetuating isolated data silos, resulting in an increased cyber-attack surface, and enabling unnecessary operational risks and potential material weaknesses. Further, the Department wastes billions of dollars in re-creating and sustaining duplicative IT infrastructure and support services to sustain these systems and applications, reducing resourcing options to drive digital
modernization.
This situation is unacceptable and must not continue. I am directing the DON Chief Information Officer to partner with the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Financial Management and Comptroller) and the Director, Office of the Chief Management Officer, to take a proactive stance and aggressively identify, assess, and ultimately eliminate redundant systems and applications throughout the organization by initiating Operation CATTLE DRIVE. The objective of CATTLE DRIVE is to accelerate the modernization and transformation of our IT capabilities by ensuring that decisions made to sunset or rationalize unneeded, obsolete, unproductive, insecure, and un-auditable IT systems and applications are realized. This
objective will be enforced through the elimination of funding and resourcing, the decertification of targeted systems and applications, and their removal from the network.
Portfolio managers and IT capability owners will be tasked with developing transition
plans with clear system and application sunset dates with no extension. These transition plans
will require the endorsement of all key stakeholders, and will eliminate investment redundancy
and overlapping business and operational capabilities. The first target area is the IT portfolio
supporting the Financial Management Business Domain, followed by the Logistics IT Portfolio.
The Business Operations Management Council, the DON Information Superiority
Executive Steering Group (ESG), and the Enterprise Resource Planning ESG, along with other
functional governance bodies, will be the primary governance forums for oversight of CATTLE
DRIVE. This does not represent an alteration of existing decision rights, and other authoritative
governance bodies will be briefed by the portfolio managers and IT capability ownership, as
necessary.
The Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps shall
provide Flag Officer/General Officer/Senior Executive Service and Action Officer points of contact for CATTLE DRIVE, and specifically for designation of portfolio managers, within five
working days from signature of this memorandum.
Signed by:
Gregory J. Slavonic
Assistant Secretary of the Navy
(Manpower & Reserve Affairs)
Performing the Duties of the
Under Secretary of the Navy