Chief Operating Officer's Message

Public health emergencies produce huge headlines, but the full story of protecting the public’s health is much deeper. CDC must continuously seek a delicate balance between promoting vital health protection goals and providing flexibility to accommodate a swift and effective response when our expertise and assets are needed anywhere in the world.

We have substantial resources at our disposal to accomplish this balance:

• An $8 billion budget for FY 2005, approximately 70% of which goes to outside organizations.
• New state-of-the-art facilities, including two of the most advanced labs ever built.
• Nearly 15,000 staff (including 6,000 contractors), many of whom could be deployed halfway around the globe at a moments notice.

We are proud that the majority of Americans surveyed— 90%—believe that CDC is doing a good or excellent job, but we continuously challenge ourselves to do even better. We ought to be able to tell the American people the health impact we are having, and we should continuously improve that impact.

More efficient operations contribute to this goal by providing the support researchers need to focus on the science that is the foundation of CDC’s reputation.

To improve the transparency of our budget information, we have created a Web-based tool called HealthImpact.net that aligns budget planning and execution with CDC’s health goals. This tool will ultimately allow the agency to better manage its portfolio of investments, projects, and programs and to track each activity’s effectiveness in delivering health impact.

Facility improvements, including four new buildings that opened in September 2005, are reducing rental expenses, offering access to better working environments for more staff, and providing state-of-the-art lab facilities so that research can be carried out more swiftly, safely, and effectively.

"We ought to be able to tell the American people the health impact we are having, and we should continuously improve that impact."

To help implement these improvements, CDC has hired seven Chief Management Officials. They have a broad responsibility for improving operations throughout the agency and measuring their progress. As a team that includes the directors of all CDC’s business service offices, they are setting our operational goals and leading the way to improve our business practices.

CDC has scored the highest level on all areas of the President’s Management Agenda.

FY 2005 has been an exciting time to be at CDC, and we believe we are better prepared than ever to face future challenges. If you have thoughts to share, please e-mail us at cdcbusinessservices@cdc.gov. Thank you for taking the time to know us better.

William H. Gimson, MBA
Chief Operating Officer