Navy's Tech Modernization Playbook Targets Government-Wide Adoption

“Basically, they observed something we were doing — we were getting a handful of wins on common problems, and other agencies started copying it, and we started sharing what we were doing,” Justin Fanelli, the Navy chief technology officer, told attendees on the sidelines of the SAP Public Sector Summit on Oct. 14 in Washington, D.C.

The playbook’s origins: an IBM Center roundtable built on the Navy’s approach

The IBM Center for the Business of Government and the Foundation for American Innovation published an enterprise IT modernization playbook over the summer that the organizations say was based largely on the U.S. Navy’s technology acquisition framework. Daniel Chenok, executive director of the IBM Center, told Nextgov/FCW that the best way to begin modernization is to have a clear picture of the portfolio agencies operate — which the playbook recommends doing by mapping processes, data and finances.

Three concrete recommendations the playbook offers agencies

The playbook sets out three practical steps, grounded in the Navy’s experience. First: understand the systems an agency operates and how those systems communicate; the playbook says IT mapping is best done by mapping processes, data and finances. Second: measure pilots against the existing systems they are intended to replace using standardized outcome measures. The Navy’s chosen metrics include user time saved or lost, adaptability, cost per user, user experience and operational resilience. Third: adopt an “acquire while divesting” strategy so agencies do not layer new technology on top of old systems — the playbook proposes requiring divestment planning in solicitations, building it into project plans and including retirement milestones in funding plans.

From a few pilots to hundreds of focused transitions

Fanelli described a sharp change in the Navy’s approach. Prior to 2025, the Navy executed only a few true technology pilots each year. In 2025 the department increased pilot activity by ten times to about 25, and in 2026 Fanelli said there are “dozens and dozens” of ongoing pilots spanning artificial intelligence, hosting hardware, edge computing, autonomy functions and niche capabilities such as float sensors. The shift also included more transparent, shared terminology across the department, reducing duplicative, siloed efforts.

Private-sector partners have played a role in scaling pilots, Fanelli said, because many companies are funding early demonstrations themselves; the Navy then needs to fund only “the last five yards” to validate and adopt mature commercial capabilities. That commercial participation has helped the department increase pilot activity without relying solely on government funds.

Project Dynamis and converting pilots into enterprise services

Some pilots have moved into critical operational roles. Project Dynamis, piloted by the Navy and U.S. Marine Corps in September 2025 to close the “sensor-to-shooter” gap, now deploys software such as the Maven Smart System to major commands, including Marine expeditionary forces, and has become the command-and-control program of record for the Marine Corps. Fanelli said ten pilots have transitioned to enterprise services or programs of record, and there is a queue of more than two dozen potential use cases awaiting conversion.

Operation Cattle Drive and the problem of legacy systems

Fanelli tied pilot conversions to Operation Cattle Drive, the Navy initiative to identify, consolidate and retire redundant, insecure and outdated IT systems. The playbook’s “acquire while divesting” recommendation is meant to prevent the common pitfall of layering new systems on top of old ones. “There’s an old [President Ronald] Reagan quote summarized: ‘The closest thing to life everlasting is being a government program,’” Fanelli said, underscoring the need to plan retirements as part of procurement and budgeting.

What this means for technologists, procurement leaders, and the Marine Corps

• Technologists: expect more standardized outcome measures — across user time saved or lost, adaptability, cost per user, user experience and operational resilience — to be used when pilots compete against incumbent systems, and clearer department-wide terminology to reduce duplication.
• Procurement leaders: the playbook recommends embedding divestment planning directly into solicitations, project plans and funding milestones so agencies can “acquire while divesting,” rather than accumulating layered legacy systems.
• The U.S. Marine Corps: Project Dynamis and the Maven Smart System are examples of pilots that have already transitioned to enterprise services and a program of record, indicating a pathway from experimentation to department-level adoption.

The Navy’s model — compressing experimentation, standardizing evaluation and forcing planned retirements — has produced a documented toolkit that other agencies can follow. The playbook builds on prior IBM Center work, including a digital modernization implementation framework and an IT modernization roadmap, and offers a tested sequence: map the portfolio, pilot with measurable outcomes, and divest as you acquire. Whether other agencies will replicate the Navy’s conversion rate from pilot to program of record remains an operational question; the playbook offers a template, and the Navy’s recent experience supplies the earliest public evidence of how it can work.

Source: Defense One — Navy’s tech playbook serves as ‘toolkit’ for rest of government