INTERVIEW: T. Wood Parker, TRW's enterprising planner

The areas for which I am responsible focus on the civilian side of government in systems integration, network operations and associated services. We also have some special skills in information security.We do a lot of work for the Treasury Communications System. We support the IRS and other bureaus. We are the principal systems support organization for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and we do work for the Securities and Exchange Commission's Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system. I think we're making progress across the board. The challenges associated with agencywide programs are a reality in the federal government. When a huge organization determines it is important to have systems that cut across the entire department, and when at the same time there are agencies within the department that are huge in their own right, it is a huge challenge for the contractor.My belief is that the key to success is collaboration between the contractors and the government customers to achieve clarity and consensus. If there is disagreement or lack of consensus, the slope of the hill is steeper than it otherwise would be. I think people who have experience in the government for the most part would agree. Keep in mind that in my organization we deal with the commercial marketplace as well. There are a number of differences. One is the size and complexity of some of our government customers. It makes it a different ball game in terms of IT support or implementing departmentwide systems. Also, the government has some constituencies beyond any of our commercial customers, whether it is Congress or the regulators. The stakeholders complicate the overall process. I think the government is making significant progress in acquisition policies to move more toward the commercial model. But at the same time, there is simply a difference because of the political context.The way the appropriators and authorizers in Congress process the budgets and money each year is different from the commercial marketplace. Also, the political appointees in the departments change more frequently than decision-makers on the commercial side. When there is a transition from one administration to another, it is felt to some degree by contractors.If you take the Bush administration's review of the Defense Department as an example, the strategic considerations have a significant potential impact on programs that a company such as TRW would be supporting. And when you talk about a change from one party to another, those reviews are going to be more significant.In my world, there are tremendous issues associated with regulation that the new administration is reconsidering. We participate in some form in many of the discussions, trying to help our customers through these analyses. We know it will have an impact on our business. Security is extraordinarily important. If you look at health care, for example, the Bush administration just issued some decisions on the privacy of patient records. As the health care industry moves from a paper process to electronic information management, you obviously come to security. The same thing can apply to financial data, whether at the government or the individual level. People and procedures are important. There are physical security issues, and issues in data transmission. Technology is available, but like everything else there are trade-offs. There are cost implications, complexity implications, regulatory implications. Two come to mind. One is that the government in many cases still depends on legacy systems, relatively old IT. The change to more modern technology is a real issue.The second need is IT expertise. Today, younger people with skills in IT typically do not go to a federal agency to start their careers. The opportunities are more attractive in the commercial marketplace. As someone who works with the government a great deal, I would like to see more people go into public service. But I'm not sure the recent cooling-off of the economy and the fall of tech stocks will really move the needle.I don't know, but when you think in terms of opportunities, they still are greater in the commercial marketplace than they are in the public sector. A lot of the agencies are attempting to do this. The IRS, when you think in terms of the number of people who are filing electronically compared to the past, is an agency that is adapting and adopting new things.There are still problems and challenges. But the number of people who are filing returns electronically should be reassuring. Anytime an organization changes, it is hard for the people involved in the processes. We're going to see that across the board in the government, particularly in agencies that provide services directly to the American people.But at IRS, with all of the disappointment associated with new systems, the fact remains, more people are filing their forms electronically. State governments, like the federal government, have challenges with legacy systems that need to be modernized.In many areas of service to citizens, the devolution of responsibilities from the federal government to the states will continue. To do that effectively, there has to be collaboration and coordination between the federal and state governments.