Guidance Used by the NWS OCFO/OCAO:

The NWS OCFO/OCAO is responsible for issuing guidance for financial planning and compliance as well as workforce and human capital management. The team strives to ensure that all portfolios, offices, and regions of the NWS have access to the relevant instructions needed to achieve the organization’s mission.

During weather-related emergencies, annual spend planning, annual property inventory, and annual labor forecasting, it is critical that the policies managed by the OCFO/OCAO provide proper internal controls and adequate information. 

The resources below are some of the knowledge repositories that the OCFO/OCAO not only follows, but also recommends to the field: 

	The NOAA Personal Property Management Branch Website, linked here, contains guidance on: Managing Historical Assets, Personal Property, and Construction Work in Progress Utilizing the Property Accountability System Software Conducting the Annual Inventory
	The Federal Acquisition Regulations, linked here, contains guidance on:  Federal Procurement laws and compliance Contract Management
	The Commerce Acquisition Manual, linked here, contains guidance on:  Contract Management  Government Purchase Card Utilization  Acquisition Planning
	The NWS Directives Website, linked here, contains guidance on:  All OCFO/OCAO Internal Policies for Organization Management     All OCFO/OCAO Internal Policies for Financial Management
	The NOAA Finance Website, linked here, contains guidance on:  Financial Systems Support       Operations Support     Financial Process Business Rules
	The Office of Human Capital Services Website, linked here, contains guidance on:  Employee Benefits and Resources Human Resources Systems      Workforce Planning Policies

The NWS OCFO/OCAO also leverages the NWS Internal Governance as a cornerstone for developing enterprise guidance. The Governance is an NWS-wide document that defines the roles, responsibilities, and business processes of the NWS. The Governance was developed to guide the organization following the restructuring of the NWS budget and the reorganization of NWS Headquarters in 2014 and serves the purpose of bridging the gap between external policies and resources to the internal NWS culture, management, and decision-making process.

As an internal guide to managing enterprise initiatives, the Governance is a document with useful information on a wide range of topics including organizational management, strategy development, and budget planning. Contributors from many NWS offices and several areas of expertise have made the Governance into a comprehensive guide for the OCFO/OCAO and other offices to implement external and internal guidance.