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DefenceDelivering Public Service for the Future
New Collaboration Tools for Defence Technology
Twice the Results in Half the Time: Redefine Productivity with a Task Management Tool for DefenceMany defence agencies are losing valuable time and money due to outdated manual processes and inefficient personnel productivity. But there are solutions. Imagine the ability to cut approval wait times by 50 percent and save up to US$120,000 per month by addressing the way defence technology and frontline departments interact, engage and collaborate. Forward thinking defence agencies are no longer focusing their defence technology and innovation efforts solely on front line requirements. Instead, they are looking within to improve cooperation and communication to better protect national security and equip the warfighter.
Defence agencies are unique in the sheer volume of tasks and the ever-increasing flow of information moving into and across the organisation. Maintaining outdated, manual procedures to complete tasks and collaborate with others compromises time, resources and ultimately, the mission. Leaders who advance their agency’s defence technology capabilities and embrace collaboration tools quickly experience substantial improvements in visibility and efficiency, and a cost effective means for meeting mission critical objectives.
Twice the results in half the time
In defence, everyday tasks have a long
reach. Beneath the umbrella of support
for the warfighter, people and processes
are challenged to keep daily business
workflows operating efficiently. Despite
impressive frontline defence technology
capabilities, business capabilities often
fall behind and focus on team level,
rather than full agency collaboration.
As a result, processes can be slow
and uncoordinated. Collaboration and
visibility are limited and agencies are
mired in bottlenecks and backlogs.
Approval wait times drag on and
deadlines are missed.
Defence technology collaboration
tools can transform sluggish
processes, reduce wait times and
enhance efficiency. Those agencies
deploying such tools across agency
enterprises are seeing greater interface
between support and operations and
improvements in their ability to deliver
services strategically and on time.
Task Management Tool (TMT) is a
defence technology collaboration
tool. Currently deployed at 30
U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)
commands and among 75,000
users, it has proven to increase staff
collaboration by 10 to 40 percent in in
every command measured. 1
As an example, a U.S. Air Combat
Command report cited user visibility as
the number one benefit of Accenture’s
TMT. 2 The report indicated that prior
to deploying TMT, 100 percent of users
expressed frustration with legacy
collaboration methods due to lack of
visibility and time spent looking for
assigned contact points and status
updates. After TMT, users experienced
increased visibility of task status and
the additional advantage of archive
capability. Efficiencies were realised
at every step of a task’s lifecycle, with
an overall cost benefit of US$1.4M
annually in strategic efficiency savings.
Late happens – but it shouldn’t happen in defence
Digital capabilities are reshaping the
way business is conducted and daily
tasks are managed. TMT simplifies
task management from delegation
through approval. Using a structured
but flexible collaboration platform,
TMT can assign tasks to individuals
or teams in an ad hoc or pre-defined
sequence, offer greater visibility
regarding task completion, and allow
review and approval before the work
is released. Scalable to accommodate
large organisations, it can serve as a
platform for DoD-wide enterprise task
management.
TMT has capabilities designed
specifically for tasking in defence.
It can assign taskers to teams or
individuals, create levels of sub-
assignments as needed, and ensure
all staff sees task information
and deadlines in one location. As
situations change, information updates
can be provided immediately. TMT
assignments can be changed at any
time and automatically send email
notifications to affected parties. As
staff respond, real-time status and
responses are visible across the entire
organisation. It allows all users to
create approval workflows and modify
them as needed. Over time, agencies
can use the data gathered by TMT to
better identify which staffs have the
longest approval processing times and
where primary sources of tasks are
located. This information can also serve
to help measure and improve staff
performance, and ultimately, provide for
better interaction between agencies.
Defence technology capabilities are
already in the battle space, leading
many defence leaders to believe their
agencies are digitized. Moving, for
example, to the use of PDF files instead
of paper doesn’t mean an agency
is digitized or even shifting in that
direction. Adopting digital capabilities
requires digital thinking. It may be
time for agencies to ask some tough
questions:
• How efficient are interaction
and cooperation between agency
support and operations?
• Are agency processes as efficient
as they could be, and can you
measure it?
• Are capabilities designed for
individual teams or for the entire
agency?
• Does the flow of information
support fast paced operational
needs?
• Are personnel often waiting on
approvals?
• Is there room for improvement in
successfully delivering services and
information?
Leaders who answered those questions
by deploying TMT as a defence
technology collaboration solution are
experiencing typical savings of about
73 minutes per task, totalling 34
hours of savings per week across each
directorate, and more than US$120,000
in savings per month. 3
As agencies shift to greater use of
defence technology capabilities,
many are learning that not all task
management systems are equal. One
U.S. Army organisation realised a 35
percent efficiency gain within two
months of moving from a home-
grown system to TMT. Further reports
indicate that the U.S. Army in Europe is
seeing approval wait times shortened
by as much as 50 percent over just
three months. A case in point is Task
Management Tool’s “one page, one
button” approval capability that cuts
total approval throughput time by half.
Time to adopt digital Task Management is now
Defence leaders must see mission
readiness as bigger than the battlefield.
Defence technology capabilities hold
great potential for agencies, but
restricting them to the front lines
is counterproductive. Shifting the
focus to include agency personnel
collaboration as well as processes will
help ensure that the volumes of tasks
are automated, accurate and completed
on time, while the flow of information
is seamless and secure. Leaders who
deploy defence-focused collaboration
tools recognize that adapting to a
digital environment is critical to the
success of their agencies, the readiness
of the force, and fully supports the
mission of defence at every level
throughout the organisation.
References
1. “DOD Task Management Tool Implementation Credential”, Accenture, page 1, 2013
2. “Knowledge Operations (KO) Tools Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA)”, Headquarters, Air Combat Command, Directorate of Communications, Warfighter Technology Division, Knowledge Operations Branch, Langley AFB, VA, , page 30, September, 2011.
3. “Knowledge Operations (KO) Tools Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA)”, Headquarters, Air Combat Command, Directorate of Communications, Warfighter Technology Division, Knowledge Operations Branch, Langley AFB, VA, page 33, September, 2011.
For more information, contact:
Antti KolehmainenManaging Director, Accenture
Enterprise Services for Defence
Phillip TopnessManager, Accenture Federal Services -
Defence
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About Delivering Public Service for the Future
What does it take to deliver public
service for the future? Public service
leaders must embrace four structural
shifts—advancing toward personalised
services, insight-driven operations,
a public entrepreneurship mindset
and a cross-agency commitment to
mission productivity. By making these
shifts, leaders can support flourishing
societies, safe, secure nations and
economic vitality for citizens in a
digital world— delivering public service
for the future.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management
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305,000 people serving clients in
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capabilities across all industries and
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companies, Accenture collaborates
with clients to help them become
high-performance businesses and
governments. The company generated
net revenues of US$30.0 billion for
the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2014. Its
home page is www.accenture.com.
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