Paper and Presentation: Less Than Seamless Integration: Adapting Inherited External Projects to Internal Standards – a Case Study of Logging Made Easy
Abstract:
In 2019 the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) developed the free Logging Made Easy (LME) tool for use by its local governments. An overlooked aspect to cyber resiliency, successful log management makes systems more secure; but traditionally it has been a heavy lift for target-rich organizations that are resource deficient. LME was a success for the NCSC. However due to a realignment of budgetary priorities dictated by the UK’s 2022 National Cyber Strategy, the decision was made to retire LME in March 2023. NCSC offered stewardship of the tool to the U.S.’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA); the Americans enthusiastically agreed. Over the next 7 months, CISA took LME and redeveloped and expanded it into a full technical solution (beyond just the initial tool) and relaunched it as a re-branded CISA project in October 2023.
Unfortunately LME faced multiple internal challenges prior to its CISA relaunch; much of which came down to a confusion of project management artifacts and stakeholder management. Until this point CISA’s cyber capacity building efforts were centered on setting up initiatives from scratch; they were not configured to handle an existing initiative that needed an upgrade prior to release. Despite endorsement from senior CISA leadership, LME continued to encounter stumbling blocks and face multiple delays from bureaucratic systems not designed to accommodate this adoption process. Obviously the LME project overcame this and was launched to great success. This presentation is a case study on how they accomplished that.
Key takeaways include:
- Lessons learned on how to adapt an existing project into another organization’s project management structure;
- Awareness of the challenges of shifting a technical service between national governments;
- How to help navigate Federal bureaucracy from a project management perspective.
PMI Talent Triangle: Ways of Working
Biography: Michael Allen Lake is a change management consultant specializing in digital transformation and strategic communications with the Federal government. Based out of Washington, DC, Michael has worked on pathfinder efforts in cloud computing and artificial intelligence for the
Department of Defense, supported the Office of Naval Research in change management efforts to integrate emerging technologies into Navy processes, provided project management and stakeholder management expertise to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency on the development and adoption of new cybersecurity products, supported the development of a new enterprise-wide credential for the Department of Homeland Security, and worked at the U.S.Embassy in Mongolia. In his spare time, Michael researches, publishes, and speaks on the diplomatic history between the United States and Mongolia. His work has included speaking at the Library of Congress, presenting at multiple international conferences, and co-authoring a chapter in the book Socialist and Post-Socialist Mongolia published by Routledge in 2021.
