Kirsten Davies, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next chief information officer (CIO) for the Pentagon, told senators today that the Pentagon’s IT enterprise is in urgent need of “great change.”
“Great change is needed in this time and in this hour,” Davies said during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
She outlined a stark picture of the Department of Defense’s (DOD) – which the Trump administration has rebranded as the Department of War – digital infrastructure, citing outdated legacy systems, sluggish procurement processes, and limited access for innovative tech startups.
“There are great people, but at today’s speed of change, skills must be constantly refreshed and future-fit,” she warned. “Cyberattacks are pervasive, and America’s adversaries are motivated and capable to inflict massive impact, and there is little deterrence.”
If confirmed, Davies said she would prioritize modernization initiatives that directly support readiness and foster a new generation of partnerships with industry and government to “catalyze cyber deterrence.”
Among those initiatives, Davies signaled – in written responses to policy questions ahead of Thursday’s hearing – her intent to build on the recently launched Software Fast Track (SWFT) initiative by pushing for automation, standardized templates, interoperability, and continuous integration to speed up the often-cumbersome authority-to-operate process.
The SWFT program, introduced by acting CIO Katie Arrington, aims to create a fast-track authority to operate process for software that will give the services and defense agencies a level of assurance that applications are secure.
Davies also pledged to reuse security assessments across the department and eliminate duplicate legacy contracts to further streamline software delivery to warfighters. She also plans to consolidate “medium-risk contracts” into broader enterprise vehicles while scaling those aligned with current DOD acquisition guidelines.
Davies also argued that commercial technologies should be the Pentagon’s default option unless mission-specific needs demand unique government solutions. Davies further endorsed IT-as-a-service procurement models, which she said could improve resiliency, speed innovation, and allow military personnel to stay focused on core missions.
“This can be seen in as-a-service use to support commodity and enterprise services such as cloud hosting, identity management, collaboration, helpdesk, and network transport,” she noted.
The Senate Armed Services Committee is expected to vote on her nomination in the coming weeks, amid mounting pressure to modernize the Pentagon’s aging digital infrastructure.