Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg rolled out new guidance this week to advance the Pentagon’s plans to restructure, consolidate, and reduce its nearly 900,000-member civilian workforce as part of the department’s Workforce Acceleration and Recapitalization Initiative.
On March 31, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth launched the initiative to streamline the DoD’s civilian workforce by consolidating duplicative roles, cutting bureaucracy, and automating routine tasks to better align with future needs.
“I will lead the DoD effort to rebalance and optimize its civilian workforce to urgently rebuild our military, revive the warrior ethos, and deliver maximum deterrence,” Feinberg wrote, adding that the initiative will begin with a detailed analysis of each component’s organizational structure.
Under Hegseth’s directive, department leaders are required to submit a “proposed future-state organizational chart” that realigns the civilian workforce and restructures operations to better meet future needs. These plans are due to Deputy Secretary Feinberg on April 11.
Feinberg noted that the proposals should identify opportunities to reduce or eliminate redundant or non-essential functions and include revised civilian manpower levels that reflect these anticipated changes.
“Every civilian role should directly enable lethality, readiness, or strategic deterrence. If not, it should be reclassified, outsourced, or removed,” Feinberg wrote.
Feinberg also directed department leaders to conduct a more detailed assessment using additional guidance attached to the memo and to submit updated proposals to the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness by May 24.
According to Feinberg, these plans will inform the department’s broader review and guide organizational changes planned for fiscal years 2025 and 2026.
Feinberg emphasized that among the renewed principles the initiative will prioritize “Digital-First Operations,” focusing on replacing outdated systems and manual processes with modern technologies. He called for the adoption of automation and artificial intelligence to enhance the effectiveness and impact of the civilian workforce.
Overall, DoD aims to reduce its civilian workforce by five to eight percent, in line with the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency workforce optimization efforts to shrink the Federal workforce. This would cut 50,000 to 60,000 positions from the department’s civilian employees.
“This is about more than efficiency – it’s about designing a workforce and structure that move at the speed of today’s challenges. We’re taking a clear-eyed look across the Department to ensure every role, every office, and every layer of management is aligned to what the mission demands right now: speed, precision, and operational impact,” Pentagon Spokesman Eric Pahon said in a statement.