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NEWS | June 4, 2021

Command Evaluation and Review Office Updates Name to Better Reflect Inspection, Investigation, Audit Responsibilities

By NSWCDD Corporate Communications

The Command Evaluation and Review office (CERO) at Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) has completed an organizational name change to better reflect its role as an independent accountability organization. In 2020, the office previously known as CERO updated its name to Command Review and Investigations (CR and I).

“The Command Review and Investigations naming convention ensures that potential stakeholders are immediately aware of the functions of the office just based on the name,” CR and I Director Robert Longworth explained.

The CR and I office has three core functions: engaging in inspections, engaging in investigations and tracking external audits. “Our office helps the commanding officer understand any risks and see where he might want to apply resources to mitigate those risks,” said Longworth. Inspections look at command operations on a routine annual basis to ensure a safe and secure environment for all employees. Investigations are typically focused on waste, fraud or abuse with specific alleged violations of law, regulation, rule or policy and determine whether they are substantiated or not substantiated. Audits were added to the CR and I core functions by Naval Sea Systems Command Inspector General and represent a liaison function with external agencies like the Naval Audit Service.

“Any large organization will have areas that are undermining the effectiveness, or fail to fully comply with the applicable law, regulation, rule or policy,” said Longworth. “Identifying those risks and weaknesses provides the ability to engage the right levels of the chain of command, or even the Navy, to address that situation and to ameliorate the circumstances. Those insights help strengthen command, and our naval defensive posture.”

The CR and I office at Dahlgren Division is responsible for executing its core functions across the workforce of over 9,100 and $1.8 billion in annual budgeted activities at NSWCDD. Similar CR and I offices exist across Naval Sea System Command’s (NAVSEA) 10 naval surface warfare centers, four shipyards and four regional maintenance centers as well as at the headquarters level. All of the offices perform an analogous role to the Inspectors General (IG) that operate at the federal agency level.

A change in nomenclature within NAVSEA had been under consideration for a number of years, with the goal of better reflecting the community’s IG-like role. Authority was provided in June 2020 to make the shift. Some offices across NAVSEA may also adopt the name of Command Inspector General, depending on the attainment of relevant certifications.