|  Many
of you throughout the agency contributed to the development of the 2005-2010
NOAA Strategic Plan, now online here,
which is intended to guide NOAA during the next several years, and we
thank you for your efforts. Only through the hard work and cooperation
of employees, partners, and stakeholders are we able to achieve meaningful
results and deliver the unique and valuable products, information, and
services that society expects of us. Such achievement begins with planning,
and planning begins with a corporate strategic plan. This plan, which
is an update of the 2003-2008 NOAA Strategic Plan, is an important document
for NOAA – it provides guidance for defining and developing programs,
for tracking our performance, and for evaluating our results. Through
good planning we develop good programs and the NOAA Strategic Plan sets
the stage for us work together to accomplish common objectives. It is
through this document that NOAA defines its vision, mission, and goals
and identifies important cross cutting priorities necessary to achieve
those goals. The goals, objectives, and performance measures of NOAA programs,
line offices, and operating units all must track ultimately to those of
the strategic plan. In this manner we ensure efficiency, effectiveness,
and accountability in all that we do. In this regard, strategic plans
for NOAA line offices are now in the final stages of preparation and will
be released shortly.
As we enter the second half of this decade, we must use
this plan to guide our efforts. NOAA is positioned to take national and
international leadership in many areas of vital concern – ranging
from climate to ocean resources. We must continue to work together to
breakdown the “stovepipes” in the agency by seeking ways to
cooperate across the various components of NOAA at all levels. Isolation
only limits our ability to make full use of all of what NOAA has to offer
– and we have much to offer. I look forward to a successful future
for NOAA and those we serve. We have made great progress to date. Let
us continue to move forward.
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