With the advancement of technology comes the need for government agencies to better develop their workforce’s culture to meet the challenges of the future, according to an official at the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA).
Army Lt. Gen. Mark T. Simerly, director of the DLA, talked about the importance of organizations, such as his own, to focus on people and data to meet the demands of a new era of warfighting during a town hall event on May 16.
“Why are we focused on culture? Culture always precedes performance,” Simerly said, adding, “We know that with our responsibility to the nation, the only way we’re going to meet that responsibility is with a world-class workforce.”
The emphasis on culture comes as a recent DLA survey revealed an overall positive agency culture, but also identified areas for improvement.
According to the survey, improvements are needed in four major areas: people, precision, posture, and partnership. Each area serves to prepare the organization and its workforce to better anticipate evolving logistics needs.
“It’s time for us to think, act, and operate differently in order for us to meet our commitments,” Simerly said. “Part of that will be to operate in a data-driven environment, to be able to adequately leverage data to make sound and timely decisions before we arrive at a point of need.”
Simerly also made it clear that data will be an effective tool to enhance DLA’s culture, helping to create useful insights into predicting and prescribing necessary actions.
“This is a world-class-level agency, and we deliver world-class-level logistics with world-class-level people, and I couldn’t be prouder to be part of this team,” said Simerly.
