How pre-accredited enterprise cloud platforms speed up defense modernization

The U.S. military has long embraced the ethos of “high-speed, low-drag” execution. Delivering timely financial audits has not historically been a strong example.

One factor continuing to dog defense agencies’ audit efforts, according to a recent GAO report, is the need to replace customized legacy systems. That need has taken on added urgency as Department of Defense officials seek to integrate artificial intelligence, automation, and real-time data analytics into their operations.

To break this persistent logjam, defense organizations and commercial suppliers must shift toward cloud-based enterprise platforms that incorporate pre-built cybersecurity controls and federal accreditations directly into their architecture, argues Jeremy Perkins, Senior Vice President at SAP National Security Services (SAP NS2).

Deploying enterprise systems already accredited under the Defense Information Systems Agency’s Impact Level 5 (IL-5) standard enables agencies to achieve continuous compliance and operational readiness immediately, rather than enduring the long delays inherent in attaining security authorizations for bespoke software deployments.

“What that means is the hard work is already done,” Perkins said in a recent interview hosted by DefenseScoop affiliate Scoop News Group and sponsored by SAP NS2. “We’ve already built the controls. We’ve already collected the bodies of evidence. We’ve already done the pre-assessments, and we’ve already been accredited by DISA. Instead of waiting years for an accreditation to be able to move forward, you can start day one and feel secure about the fact that these applications can store and process your data at the sensitivity level the mission requires.”

Perkins explained how a unified enterprise platform that manages human resources, finance, supply chain, manufacturing, sales, and procurement, pre-certified to operate in a DISA-approved cloud environment, can help defense organizations fast-track modernization, reduce administrative overhead, and deliver more valuable data to leaders.

Among other advantages, it helps defense agencies:

• Transition to a continuous ‘Authority to Operate’ across compliance frameworks. Defense contractors and military services navigate a complex matrix of regulatory standards, including the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), zero-trust architectural directives, FedRamp requirements and DISA impact levels. Establishing real-time monitoring capabilities requires software designed for continuous ATO, not periodic audits.
• Shift to a clean-core architecture over heavy customization. Attempting to solve enterprise supply chain challenges through custom-built monoliths and single-purpose tools creates critical long-term maintenance burdens. Maintaining security patches, compliance updates, and access governance across fragmented tools quickly becomes cost prohibitive. In contrast, adopting a clean-core enterprise resource planning (ERP) architecture — where core functionality remains standardized and custom capabilities reside externally — enables organizations to execute software upgrades rapidly and maintain sanitized data for future technology adoption.
• Deploy governed agentic AI at the tactical edge. As defense organizations prepare to integrate agentic AI tools into enterprise workflows, robust governance and strict access controls are essential to ensuring data integrity and preventing unauthorized operations. By embedding pre-trained, certified AI agents directly into standard ERP processes, enterprise platforms allow agencies to automate complex supply workflows without compromising security or requiring manual oversight at every step.

During the interview, Perkins recounted the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)’s success in deploying pre-accredited cloud capabilities to modernize its supply chain systems. The initiative has enabled DLA to actively manage approximately 5 million assets across these systems and process over 10,000 transactions daily, while earning industry recognition for cloud cybersecurity, he said.

He also pointed to efforts underway at the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Army and USTRANSCOM to modernize enterprise capabilities and streamline operations using SAP’s pre-certified ERP system.

Looking ahead, Perkins highlighted how defense agencies can accelerate AI adoption with the release of the Autonomous Enterprise, which has embedded AI agents throughout SAP’s ERP platform.

“Those agents are really there to automate a lot of these end-to-end workflows where you don’t really need a person in the middle of it,” Perkins explained. “On top of that, these agents are already trained, tested, and certified by SAP. So you know they’re only there to do exactly what we want them to do to lessen those fears of what this thing is really doing when I’m not watching it.”

That may be just what auditors need to bring “high-speed, low-drag” execution to defense agency audits.

Learn more about how SAP NS2 supports defense enterprise modernization.

This article and the video interview were produced by Scoop News Group for DefenseScoop and underwritten by SAP NS2.