Digitalizing Federal Authorization (ATO) for the Nation’s Most Complex Missions

Industry Descriptor: A Premier Global Systems Integrator and Defense Contractor

The Challenge

As a prime contractor to the U.S. Federal Government managing large-scale programs across defense, intelligence, and civil agencies, this organization faced a critical bottleneck in its Digital Entity Review (DER) process. When managing thousands of secure systems across a massive federal portfolio, traditional document-heavy and manual authorization workflows couldn’t keep pace. The organization needed to maintain high operational velocity without sacrificing the rigid security standards required for national security infrastructure.

The Solution

The team delivered a transformational capability by implementing the Digital Authorization Compliance Manager (SmartDACM) natively within ServiceNow IRM. This solution shifted the organization from a document-centric model to a data-driven, machine-readable authorization engine.

Key project elements included:

  • OSCAL-Native Integration: Automated security plan generation using the Open Security Controls Assessment Language (OSCAL) for machine-readable compliance.
  • Workflow Digitalization: Fully digitalized the DER process to remove manual hand-offs and delays between engineering and compliance teams.
  • Unified System of Record: Created a single, authoritative source for all policies, controls, and evidence across the entire federal business unit.

Key project elements included:

  • Operational Velocity: Established a foundation for faster growth by significantly reducing the time required for complex federal authorizations.
  • Scale and Repeatability: The automated compliance engine created a standardized, repeatable framework that can be applied across diverse federal agencies simultaneously.
  • Audit Readiness: Automated lineage and evidence capture eliminated the “audit scramble,” ensuring the team is always prepared for rigorous federal assessments.
  • Fundamental Transformation: This shift has been recognized as a fundamental change in how the organization manages digital entity reviews at scale.

"The implementation of this software has been a transformational capability for our review process. The foundation established here is critical for our ongoing growth and operational success in supporting the U.S. Federal Government."

Executive Leadership Team Global Systems Integrator and Defense Contractor