Transforming a Federal Agency

Discover how the author transformed a massive government department in just a few years and fixed seemingly unfixable problems  In Transforming a Federal Agency: Management Lessons from HUD’s Financial Reconstruction, finance and strategy expert Irving (Irv) L. Dennis delivers an insightful and eye-opening exploration of the lessons he learned in bringing private sector experience to the transformation of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s financial systems.  Pulled out of retirement after a 37-year career at Ernst & Young (EY), the author’s tenure at HUD involved a rapid and surgical rejuvenation of their financial infrastructure. The book details the ten management areas he focused on and also includes:  The transformation process and the barriers and roadblocks the author encountered on his journey  Ensuring an enduring transformation even after changes in administration  Functional differences between the private sector and governmental organizations  How the author approached his first 100 days as Chief Financial Officer of the Department  Insights into the innerworkings of the Executive Branch of government   Perfect for government employees, finance professionals in the public and private sectors, and business students, Transforming a Federal Agency is a simultaneously fascinating and instructive journey through the remediation of seemingly intractable financial mismanagement.

Foreword from Former Secretary of HUD, Dr. Ben Carson xi Introduction: What the Reader Can Expect xvii Part I The Beginning 1 The Nomination Process 3 2 About HUD 21 3 HUD’s State of Affairs 43 Part II The Evaluation Process 4 My First Hundred Days 55 5 Evaluation of Governance, People, Processes, and Technology (GPPT) 75 6 Understanding How It Got This Bad 87 7 Barriers to Success 95 Part III The Transformation Process 8 Building the Platform for Success 113 9 Financial and IT Modernization 139 10 Coordination with Critical Service Providers 161 11 The Results—Where We Were in 2020 173 12 Making HUD’s Transformation Sustainable 201 Part IV Observations And Reflections 13 Differences Between the Private and Public Sectors 211 14 Final Thoughts—An Experience of a Lifetime 227 Acknowledgments 251 About the Author 255 Appendix 257 Appendix A Acronyms and Definitions 259 Appendix B History of HUD 267 Appendix C Summary of HUD’s 2020 Enacted Budget 271 Appendix D CFO Letters in the Agency Financial Report 273 Appendix E My Resignation Letter 289 Appendix F List of HUD’s Accomplishments in 2018 and 2019 291 Index 311