Strategies and Initiatives

Selected Projects:

DHS Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) Development

The overall objective of the DHS Resource Analysis Training was to educate the DHS resource community on the critical elements of a planning, programming, budgeting, and execution (PPBE) process and its interfaces with other interrelated Departmental governance processes. The Office of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the DHS is responsible for analyzing and evaluating plans, programs, and budgets of the Department; overseeing the integration of the Department’s PPBE system; and leading the Department’s Program and Budget Review processes. In January and April of 2009, IDA drew on Department of Defense experience to train the DHS CFO community on the PPBE process. Based on attendee feedback, IDA enhanced future training offerings with additional tailoring for DHS processes, programs, case examples, and challenges. IDA provided and supported two instances of DHS training and education under this task order. The two instances were part of a one day DHS Resource Analyst Symposium and a one day Program Review Workshop.

Department of Homeland Security: Program Analysis Handbook, Revised v.4.1 (June 2014)

The purpose of this handbook is to provide personnel participating in the program review process an overview of what program analyses are, how program analyses are conducted, how issue teams are organized and led, and how results are compiled and presented to senior leadership to support decision making.

DHS Program Analysis Skills and Capabilities Inventory (June 2014)

This guidebook provides an overview of the knowledge, skills, and abilities that DHS Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) analysts need in order to fulfill their roles successfully within PA&E and support DHS leadership. It is organized into three primary sections: the overall requirements and missions of PA&E as an organization that determine the tasks required of a PA&E analyst; the skills needed of a PA&E analyst to accomplish these tasks; and examples of the various ways in which analysts can acquire those skills through training and hands-on experience.

Department of Homeland Security: Resource Allocation Playbook, Revised (November 2013)

The purpose of this playbook is to provide DHS stakeholders, who have a direct interest in how resource allocation decisions are made, with insight into the decision making processes supporting DHS senior leadership. It also provides new senior leadership with an overview of the tools available to them to support their decision making and outside stakeholders with an overview of how DHS works on the inside with respect to resource allocation decision making. The playbook describes the role of CFO, Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E), in making independent, fact-based, and objective data available to inform DHS senior leadership, and it describes DHS plans for continued improvement of this decision making support.

Department of Homeland Security: Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution System Operating Handbook, Revised (June 2012)

The purpose of this handbook is to assist the planning, programming, budgeting, and execution (PPBE) participants in understanding the DHS PPBE system and how to constructively participate in it. It provides a summary description of the major process phases, key inputs, primary products, general timelines, and organizational responsibilities within DHS for PPBE. It also provides a detailed description of the resource data used in programming. This handbook is relevant to all participants in the DHS PPBE system, at both the Component and headquarters levels. It includes material on all phases of the DHS PPBE system, but is focused primarily on planning, programming, and budgeting, with special emphasis on programming.

After-Action Report for the Department of Homeland Security’s FY 2010-2014 Program Review (March 2009)

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E), asked IDA to follow the DHS FY 2010–2014 program review process, assess its effectiveness, and provide written recommendations for improvement. This report documents those recommendations. IDA staff attended various meetings related to the DHS FY 2010–2014 program review to assess how well the process executed. After the conclusion of the DHS FY 2010–2014 program review, IDA staff interviewed Deputy Secretary Paul A. Schneider and members of the Program Review Board to solicit comment on their experiences. IDA staff developed recommendations in the context of DHS’s Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) system documents, DHS plans and goals for the DHS FY 2010–2014 program review process, and IDA staff experience with the Department of Defense’s PPBE system.

Homeland Security Information Sharing

DHS commissioned the creation of an Information Technology IT plan and the initial version has been delivered. Since this plan will set the direction for and both enable and constrain DHS`s use of information to fulfill its mission for many years to come, it is appropriate that an independent examination be done prior to its commission and development of an information strategy. DHS considers this to be a multi-year task with funding established on an annual basis.

Information Sharing and Collaboration Business Plan (June 2005)

IDA developed a draft Business Plan that addresses Information Sharing Vision, the "As-Is" status and analysis, the "To-Be" (desired end state), and an implementation plan (road map) including recommended near, mid, and long term actions. Key concepts addressed included in-depth development of advanced collaboration capabilities, inter-agency and coalition Information Sharing and Collaboration (ISC), detailed capability requirements, and requirements. Also, principal issues in governance, standards and policy, cultural resistance, resources, access and dissemination control, collaboration, and architecture. A new Capability Maturity Model for ISC and an extensive ISC glossary are included.