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Hello, I'm Tommy Thompson, Secretary of Health and Human Services. For twenty-five years, the Department of Health & Human Services and its component agencies have served the many and diverse needs of tens of millions of Americans. I am proud to be part of your efforts. As we fulfill our mission, we are mindful of our accountability to the American taxpayer. President Bush's Management Agenda reminds us that: "Government should be results-oriented - guided not by process, but by performance." We can provide new assurance of our performance – not just to others, but to ourselves – by unifying our various financial accounting and reporting systems. That's why together we are creating an integrated, department-wide financial system that consistently will produce relevant, reliable and timely financial information to support decision-making and cost-effective business operations at all levels throughout the department. It's called the Unified Financial Management System — U.F.M.S. — and I believe it will achieve greater economies of scale, eliminate duplication, and provide better service delivery across our constituency groups. As most of you know, UFMS will be rolled out across the Department over a seven-year period. We already know there will be important benefits to all of us…and, ultimately, to those we serve. The full implementation of UFMS will reduce administrative costs, freeing up resources for program functions. UFMS will provide better integration of financial and program data, and program managers will be able to make more informed, fact-based decisions. UFMS will improve our business operations by standardizing our financial management processes. And UFMS will reduce system maintenance and operational costs across the Department. Implementing this new system poses significant technical and operational challenges. After all, HHS components have many different responsibilities and goals. That's why UFMS is being led and implemented by teams of representatives from all over the department. Not just the agencies, but also those individuals who will actually be working with the unified system. And that is why I encourage you to become involved in this important initiative. To learn how UFMS will affect and benefit your agency, and to help make sure that your strategic program needs are understood, please participate! UFMS governance committees, requests for input, a newsletter, and a website – all are ways for you to keep abreast – and to involve yourself in this initiative. I thank you in advance for your support and participation. The successful implementation of UFMS is important to all of us, and to the millions of Americans who rely on us. |
Last revised: November 24, 2002
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