The Global Force Information Management (GFIM) system is one of the first to span the business mission area and the war-fighting mission area. Credit: spainter_vfx via Shutterstock.

BigBear.ai has been granted a $8.5m contract by the US Army for a six month extension to work on the Global Force Information Management (GFIM) system, announced 12 June.

GFIM is one of the first defence business systems to span the business mission area and the war-fighting mission area. The implementation of an automated Deploy to Redeploy and Retrograde of Material (D2RR) will add to the military’s efforts to enhance readiness, improve global force management, and streamline operations.

BigBear.ai was awarded a single-source contract to collaborate with Deloitte, Appian, and Ignite IT in developing an enterprise-wide intelligent automation platform, consolidating 15 disparate legacy systems into an automated D2RR process.

“GFIM will be the first place authoritative data is transacted to send a demand signal to trigger an action,” says Lori Mangold, US Army G-3 GFIM Chief Management Officer.

“For example, if you’re in the human resource area, you may not know what people and skillsets you need and when you need them unless you get a demand signal from GFIM. The force structure position can then direct and guide you so you can appropriately recruit, implement retention methods, and know what training is needed – and how to resource it.”

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As the prime contractor, BigBear.ai will work alongside its partners to provide the US Army with a comprehensive perspective of its global force structure. In earlier phases of the project, significant progress was made in the development of foundational force design, registration, and accounting capabilities.

The Phase 2 capabilities were put to the test through user validation, which involved members of the total US Army, and now BigBear.ai have been tasked with migrating the prototype into the Army’s cARMY cloud, in accordance with the Army’s Cloud Plan 2022.

BigBear.ai work is intended to assist the US Army in fulfilling Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth’s goal of adopting cutting-edge technologies and transitioning to a more data-driven approach. In a February address to service members, Wormuth outlined the significance of an integrated and data-driven strategy in enabling the US Army to enhance its effectiveness and efficiency as a force in the future.