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Defense Logistics Agency Director Army Lt. Gen. Mark Simerly outlined a sweeping modernization push aimed at keeping pace with the joint force’s evolving needs, describing the effort during a May 17 interview on Fed Gov Today.
Simerly said the agency is reorienting around data, retiring aging systems, reassessing missions and reviewing its global footprint to better align with emerging operational demands. He emphasized building a shared data environment with advanced analytics and a seamless, automated flow of information between DLA, the military services and combatant commands to improve interoperability and decision-making.
While technology was once viewed as the principal obstacle, Simerly said the bigger challenge now lies in changing processes and behaviors. “It’s now the procedural aspect and the human aspect of interoperability that we have to drive change in,” he said.
A key friction point, he noted, is DLA’s “legacy debt,” with critical data still confined to outdated systems. Moving off those platforms requires both technical upgrades and a cultural shift away from entrenched workflows. Recent deployments of enterprise-scale tools are accelerating that transition, including a modernized warehouse management system and updates to DLA’s enterprise resource planning environment to use S/4 HANA. Those changes are designed to strengthen audit readiness and enable proactive supply-chain planning that looks beyond historical demand patterns.
Simerly said the agency is also scrutinizing its portfolio to ensure activities directly support its core role as a combat support agency, acknowledging that some longstanding missions may no longer represent the best use of resources. That review extends to infrastructure: DLA currently backs more than 600 defense fuel support sites and upwards of two dozen distribution warehouses worldwide, and their locations are being weighed against the priorities of the National Defense Strategy. “We’re constantly reviewing not only this question about infrastructure, but what it is that we do and how well we’re organized to meet our missions and responsibilities to the warfighter,” Simerly said.
