GCSS-Army
Written by PM GCSS-Army Organizational Change Management
MLF 2009 Volume: 3 Issue: 9 (October)
The GCSS-Army Release 1.0 that began operations at the B Direct Support Unit (B DSU), Regimental Support Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR), National Training Center (NTC), Fort Irwin, Calif., in December 2007 as an operational assessment and continuous evaluation (OA/CE) of the supply support activity functions of GCSS-Army continues to perform well there.
The Army continues to close the gaps in its mission to manage business processes and tactical logistics as a single enterprise. Successful implementation of Release 1.0 at the NTC, combined with momentum toward the next release, addresses persistent capability gaps that have plagued warfighters for decades.
Major Dan Nerdig, assistant PM, GCSS-Army, recently returned from deployment as science tech adviser to the 402 Army Field Support Brigade (AFSB), Balad, Iraq. While working with members of the design team during a review of GCSS-Army’s capacity to provide commanders with maintenance and equipment status reports, Nerdig acknowledged that capability gaps inherent in current Standard Army Management Information Systems (STAMIS) will soon be eliminated. He said, “In theater, we were constantly troubled by repair parts being reordered or lost in transit when we reorganized. With GCSS-Army, commanders and their staffs will view accurate near real-time maintenance history, parts orders and readiness status of equipment, regardless of its location because when information is recorded, it is there for everyone to see anywhere, anytime. When equipment moves during reorganization, all of its records are visible in the single GCSS-Army database not stored on a disconnected server or floppy disk.”
With the pending implementation of Release 1.1 at the 11th ACR in July 2010, GCSS-Army will exhibit integrated functionality in property book, ground maintenance, retail supply and associated financial processes for tactical logistics. Following on the heels of Release 1.0 at the B DSU, Release 1.1 of GCSS-Army will manage all logistics functions of the 11th ACR. The staggered release schedule reduces risk and enhances soldiers’ understanding of the system and its benefits while providing time to assess and respond to lessons learned.
Project Manager (PM), GCSS-Army, Colonel Jeffrey Wilson considers the NTC a challenging, yet fitting, setting in which to conduct Operational Assessment/Continuous Evaluation 2 (OA/ CE2) of GCSS-Army. “NTC is a unique environment. OPTEMPO is high, soldiers are highly trained and their specific mission provides a degree of continuity. The first operational assessment at the B DSU was a success. I am pleased that leadership at the NTC and 11th ACR is supporting the next phase of the GCSS-Army project. This is an important step for the Army’s enterprise vision and the 11th ACR is at the tip of the spear,” he said.
In simple terms, GCSS-Army will subsume the legacy STAMIS systems into one system that is accessed through the Internet. Using a commercial off-the-shelf application, the Army’s logistics business processes and associated data will reside in one location where users will access specific information and work requirements based on their roles and permissions. Preparing the Army for these coming changes in its automated logistics environment is an important part of the project.
Using lessons learned from other enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementations and industry best practices, the PM has developed an organizational change management (OCM) plan for the project. Change management team members work closely with all functional areas of the project in order to identify communications opportunities and provide stakeholders across the Army with timely information and insight into how GCSS-Army fits into the evolving logistics landscape.
Educating and training users of an ERP is crucial for success when fielding a new system of this magnitude. GCSS-Army training that was developed to support Release 1.0 has been updated and was recently delivered to users at the 11th ACR B DSU. Contemporary computer-based instruction is more versatile and functional than ever for training users of systems and software. GCSS-Army will take advantage of this improved technology and employ a context sensitive and real-time help function that guides users through their navigation requirements. By simply clicking the help button in GCSS-Army, users will be visually directed through their tasks using simulations and on-screen text. Training developers are gauging the acceptance and effectiveness of this approach as they design materials for Releases 1.1 and 1.2.
Performing the OA/CE at the 11th ACR also provides valuable information to the GCSS-Army deployment team. Due to the integrated processes and functions of GCSS-Army related to maintenance, retail supply, property book and finance for tactical logistics, the effects of fielding the system will be felt by virtually all logisticians in the regiment. The deployment team is evaluating how effectively and efficiently key tasks can be performed such as data cleansing, scheduling of new equipment training, and site surveys of equipment and associated communications. When Army-wide fielding occurs, lessons learned from these OA/ CE 2 activities will be valuable to ensure that gaining units are minimally disrupted and properly trained.
PM GCSS-Army personnel conducted the first official site survey at the NTC in July 2009. Leadership at the 11th ACR worked closely with team members to plan for activities that will impact the regiment’s logisticians as well as others in information management, public affairs, operations and resource management.
Continuing the momentum that began with the initial site survey in July, the PM GCSS-Army plans to conduct a series of follow-on site surveys at the NTC in the months leading up to the July 2010 go live date. The site surveys will accomplish a number of objectives, including identification of each end-user that will convert from using the current systems to GCSS-Army during the OA/CE2 and identifying the support needed during the implementation.
During the site surveys, the PM GCSS-Army team will initiate and develop a lead user program at the 11th ACR. Subject matter experts in supply, property accountability, maintenance and finance from the PM team will train lead users, selected by the 11th ACR leadership from the potential users of GCSS-Army, to help with the transition from the current systems to GCSS-Army. The lead users will learn how to navigate in the system, perform mission transactions using GCSS-Army, solve challenges that arise, and provide over-the-shoulder training for their teammates during OA/CE 2. By the go live date in July 2010, the lead users will know enough about GCSS-Army to make an immediate positive impact on other soldiers who will begin using the system as the OA/CE 2 kicks off. As the OA/ CE 2 progresses, the lead users will train other users to achieve the same level of expertise, thus increasing the pool of highly knowledgeable GCSS-Army users for the future.
Also in advance of the go live date, the PM team will offer training via the Internet to 11th ACR soldiers who will use the system. This Web-based training will allow interested soldiers to learn basics about the system prior to the new equipment training (NET), scheduled to begin in May 2010. Because of the complexity of instructor-led training and getting the right audiences to classrooms during high OPTEMPO times, the PM GCSS-Army will conduct as much of the NET as possible via Web-based training, which soldiers can access at any time, as long as they have a computer and the Internet. This approach makes it easier and quicker for soldiers to get their work done. GCSS-Army NET material will be developed in accordance with TRADOC guidelines. In order to facilitate a rapid transition to sustainment and institutional training, the training development processes follow the automated systems approach to training (ASAT) methodology. Furthermore, it aligns with the TRADOC Regulation 350-70 - Army XXI and Training Development Vision. The combination of robust instructor-led NET and Web-based enhancements to that training will provide the optimum learning opportunity for soldiers who use GCSS-Army and will reduce the turbulence usually associated with new system fieldings in the Army.
In the spring of 2010, the PM GCSS-Army will instruct soldiers of the 11th ACR in data cleansing methods. Data cleansing is important to the success of the project, as in some cases, the current logistics management information systems contain outdated and/or inaccurate data. If the soldiers and PM GCSS-Army team members do not cleanse the data properly, it will not transfer properly to GCSS-Army or if it transfers (converts), it will continue to be outdated or inaccurate. During the immediate lead-up to the go live date, the PM team and unit personnel will convert the data in the current systems to the GCSS-Army system via procedures that the PM GCSS-Army will provide to the 11th ACR soldiers well in advance.
During the two months before the go live date, instructors from PM GCSS-Army will conduct NET in classroom environments at the NTC for users who are available to take the training. Conducted in accordance with the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command standards for classroom training, the NET will cover the functional and technical aspects of GCSS-Army that the soldiers need to perform their missions. Soldiers will apply what they learn on computers in the classroom in practical exercises with instructors providing over-the-shoulder help. To the maximum extent possible, designated users of the system will have the requisite training to meet and exceed their performance standards before they go live on the system.
The soldiers of the 11th ACR who currently operate the Standard Army Retail Supply System; the Standard Army Maintenance System-Enhanced; and the Property Book Unit Supply-Enhanced systems will convert to GCSS-Army in July 2010, according to the current plan. For some period of time, yet to be determined, the 11th ACR will experience a blackout of the current logistics management information systems, while the data they house is converted into GCSS-Army. Once the data has successfully converted to GCSS-Army, the units will go live using GCSS-Army to perform their logistics missions. Members of the PM GCSS-Army staff will remain on site at the NTC for several weeks following the go live date to ensure that the soldiers using GCSS-Army learn how to effectively perform their missions, while building on the NET. The PM GCSS-Army staff will also troubleshoot challenges that arise and record lessons learned that the PM can use in future fielding activities of GCSS-Army.
Once the operational assessment has successfully concluded, the PM GCSS-Army expects to receive approval from the Office of the Secretary of Defense to proceed with the steps necessary to prepare to field GCSS-Army to the entire Army. The first follow on step will be to conduct initial operational testing and evaluation (IOT&E) at another unit that the Department of the Army staff will select. Once the IOT&E has successfully completed, the PM will move toward full fielding to the Army. Based on the current plan, full fielding should begin around October 2011 and conclude during calendar year 2015. Both the active and Reserve components of the Army will receive GCSS-Army.
When completed, fielding of GCSS-Army will represent the largest deployment of a major new management information system in the Army’s history. Soldiers that use the system will experience tangible benefits, as will their commanders who make decisions in combat and other environments for which accurate and timely background data is critical. As Lieutenant General Mitchell Stevenson, the Army’s Deputy Chief of Staff, G-4 said, “One key aspect of logistics is being able to have a complete picture—where equipment is, what state it is in, and where it is scheduled to go. Having 360- degree visibility helps us prepare. I don’t just mean prepare to deploy, although that is a large part of it, but to prepare for the future—to plan budgets, determine requirements and shape readiness.” GCSSArmy will go a long way toward achieving this goal of completing the picture.
Major Dan Nerdig is the assistant project manager for the Global Combat Support System-Army. Prior to his assignment with the PM GCSS-Army, Nerdig served as science technical adviser to the 402 AFSB at Balad Air Base, Iraq. ♦