Strategic Theme 5: Management Processes

Strengthen management processes to enable effective implementation of strategic themes, increase operating efficiencies, and reduce administrative burden.

Objective 5.1: Focus on enterprise issues.

Staff will focus on enhancing operational processes that support effective implementation of the Board's objectives, increase operating efficiencies, and reduce administrative burden.

Accomplishments

• Begin planning for the 2016-19 period by conducting facilitated discussions with governors and division directors to identify broad strategic goals.
  • Began the planning process for the 2016-19 Strategic Plan. Selected a vendor to assist with developing and implementing the process.
  • Completed the foundational plan document using input and feedback from senior leadership on challenges and opportunities.

• Engage stakeholder groups to refine objectives and initiatives for inclusion in the revised strategic plan.
  • Established six workgroups made up of over 80 senior leaders representing all division and offices to develop objectives and performance indicators for the 2016-19 Strategic Plan.
• Revise existing strategic performance and financial management reports to provide a more uniform and integrated reporting structure.
  • Merged the quarterly Chief Financial Officer Report and the quarterly Strategic Performance Report into a single quarterly internal performance report that describes accomplishments against strategic goals and objectives as well as financial performance.
  • Eliminated the separate Annual Review: Budget Review (ARBR) and included the information in the Board's Annual Report as a new chapter.
• Implement fully the Investment Review Board (IRB) to support effective project management for significant projects.
  • Integrated the IRB into the budget and oversight process so that all significant projects are reviewed prior to budget approval. Reviewed 17 ongoing projects and four new projects that will start in 2015.

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Objective 5.2: Strengthen financial planning accountability.

Staff will work with key stakeholders to develop and implement changes to the planning and budget process. Staff will also propose enhancements to financial performance reporting to focus on the Board's fiduciary responsibility as a trusted steward of public funds.

Accomplishments

• Implement a reporting framework that maps budgets and actual expenses to the Board's primary mission areas to provide greater comparability for reporting across the Federal Reserve System.
  • Developed a mapping of accounts and operating units that align the Board's budgets and actual expenses to operating areas that are similar to those of the Federal Reserve Banks. Also created new detailed data accounts to improve the tracking and monitoring of data costs.
• Implement a multiyear forecasting tool and associated processes to inform guidance for developing the 2015 budget.
  • Began evaluating a multiyear forecasting application, SMARTCast, which will help inform budget development, provide forecast information, and more closely align the Board to Federal Reserve Banks information, which will allow for greater comparability in reporting.
  • Established budget guidance that included growth targets in the Board's base budget and objectives for growth in specific cost categories based on historical spending. The guidance helped ensure consistency across all divisions.
• Evaluate the current approach for budgeting staffing requirements and tracking personnel expenses.
  • Increased the level of account analysis and support for salary components.
  • Provided summary tables, charts, and analysis of salary components and new initiatives for briefings and discussions with the Committee on Board Affairs (CBA) and the Executive Committee.

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Objective 5.3: Reduce financial management administrative burden.

Staff will engage a variety of stakeholders to identify opportunities to reduce administrative burden.

Accomplishments

• Identify and implement additional automated reporting tools to assist divisions in monitoring expenses.
  • Enhanced the salary component tracking tool to help with year-end salary projections and variance explanations for specific salary components.
  • Began evaluating the budget system used by Federal Reserve Banks, BudgetWeb, to determine the feasibility of using it for developing the Board's budget and to determine if the system would allow the Board to leverage common processes, reduce administrative functions, and establish repeatable, automated processes.
• Continue procurement reengineering efforts. Implement automated processes to assist divisions in developing statements of work.
  • The procurement reengineering effort was initiated in 2014 and will be phased in during 2015 with an operational review, competency development and training, and a strategic acquisition development review.

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