Report Contents
What OIG Inspected
OIG inspected executive direction, policy implementation, federal assistance, resource management, and information technology and records management operations at the Global Engagement Center.
What OIG Recommends
OIG made 18 recommendations to the Global Engagement Center. In its comments on the draft report, the Global Engagement Center concurred with all 18 recommendations. OIG considers all 18 recommendations resolved. The Global Engagement Center’s response to each recommendation, and OIG’s reply, can be found in the Recommendations section of this report. The center’s formal response is reprinted in its entirety in Appendix B.
What OIG Found
- The Global Engagement Center, under its current leadership, strengthened its relationships in the interagency community, the Department of State, and with international partners while conducting significant work to counter disinformation overseas that threatens U.S. security interests.
- Despite having a clear legal mandate to coordinate Department and interagency efforts to counter propaganda and disinformation by foreign state and non-state actors, the center’s legacy organizational structure, insufficient internal controls to properly manage contractors, and a limited strategic planning process affected its ability to fully meet its mission.
- The center’s leadership faced a considerable challenge to address a work environment that created Equal Employment Opportunity concerns among staff.
- The center did not conduct risk assessments and obtain authorizations to operate its global and U.S. government analytics platforms.
- Spotlight on Success: The center’s August 2020 report, The Pillars of Russia’s Disinformation and Propaganda Ecosystem, assisted foreign governments, civil society, academia, and media to increase their resilience by exposing Russian disinformation tactics and sources.
- Spotlight on Success: The Tech Challenges program, a series of regional competitions, advanced innovative solutions to counter adversarial disinformation by funding new technologies and offering a forum to highlight and connect entrepreneurs.
Report Terms
Report Recommendations
The Global Engagement Center, in coordination with the Bureau of Global Talent Management, should conduct an organizational assessment and align the center’s organizational structure with operational needs.
The Global Engagement Center should clarify and codify the roles and responsibilities of the Policy, Plans, and Operations Division and the Interagency and International Coordination Cell in the Foreign Affairs Manual.
The Global Engagement Center should approve a plan to implement its Functional Bureau Strategy, update its major programs to include key priorities, and assess its execution by conducting regular reviews with its staff, in accordance with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center should appoint an evaluation coordinator with decision-making authority to conduct evaluations appropriate to its portfolio, in accordance with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center should review risks to its strategic objectives, implement processes for identifying and responding to risk, and communicate risk response guidance to staff in accordance with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center should comply with federal and Department standards with respect to pre-award design and approval processes for its federal assistance programs.
The Global Engagement Center should complete the closeout process for awards currently overdue and implement procedures for the timely close out of future awards.
The Global Engagement Center should develop and implement standard operating procedures for overseas award programs that include requirements for reporting on monitoring and evaluation data.
The Global Engagement Center should review and de-obligate all invalid unliquidated obligations without activity for more than 1 year, in accordance with Department guidance, so that funds of up to $745,000 can be put to better use.
The Global Engagement Center should comply with Department contracting officer’s representative program standards.
The Global Engagement Center should comply with mandatory leadership training requirements in accordance with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center should conduct risk assessments and obtain authorizations to operate for its analytics platforms from the Bureau of Information Resource Management.
The Global Engagement Center should use domain names for the Global Engagement Center’s analytics platforms that comply with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center, in coordination with the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, should require the Information Systems Security Officers for the Global Engagement Center analytics platforms to perform their duties in accordance with Department guidance.
The Global Engagement Center should implement procedures to ensure all aspects of its analytics platforms’ systems documents are completed and current, in accordance with Department standards.
The Global Engagement Center, in coordination with the Office of the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, should conduct a cost-benefit analysis for its analytics support program.
The Global Engagement Center should develop and implement a project plan for replacing the Disinformation Cloud website.
The Global Engagement Center should implement a records management program that complies with Department standards.