Major changes to the Transportation Department’s IT management; A shakeup in the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy plans to sunset several outdated agency IT systems and consolidate technology management under a new program called 1DoT, according to a memo sent earlier this week. 1DoT, Duffy wrote, is meant to “unify” the department, whose components include the Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The 1DoT initiative is supposed to eliminate redundancies and focus on “efficiency, accountability, and operational excellence,” Duffy explained in the email, which was viewed by FedScoop. The memo lays into myriad problems with the Transportation Department’s $3.5 billion annual IT portfolio, calling its systems “outdated, expensive, and unsecure.” Duffy said: “This complicated web of technology is more than just a nuisance. Less efficiency means longer wait times for project completion, grants signed, or safety reviews conducted. Emil Michael, undersecretary of defense for researching and engineering and the Pentagon’s CTO, has taken on the role of acting director of the Silicon Valley-headquartered Defense Innovation Unit in the wake of Doug Beck’s resignation, DefenseScoop has learned. Beck unexpectedly resigned on Monday. The Defense Department has not provided an explanation for his sudden resignation. However, a defense official confirmed that Michael will fill the role and Michael Dodd has been appointed as the acting deputy director, saying they are “laser-focused on driving innovation and enhancing the Department’s ability to deliver groundbreaking commercial technologies to empower the American warfighter.” Dodd has been a principal at DIU since December 2022. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump nominated him to be assistant secretary of defense for critical technologies, which falls under the Pentagon’s R&E directorate. The Daily Scoop Podcast is available every Monday-Friday afternoon. If you want to hear more of the latest from Washington, subscribe to The Daily Scoop Podcast  on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify and YouTube.