**GAO-09-418**                      Published: Apr 09, 2009. Publicly Released: May 11, 2009.                  

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## Highlights

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) collects the revenues that fund the federal government and issues billions of dollars in refunds. Consequently, IRS's ability to demonstrate agility and speed in restoring its functions after a disruption is vital to the government and the economy. GAO (1) identified the definition and attributes of organizational resilience; (2) examined the extent to which these attributes are exhibited within IRS; and (3) reviewed the challenges and opportunities faced by the IRS in becoming more resilient. GAO gathered and analyzed the attributes of resilience based on discussions with academic and practitioner experts in the field. GAO then reviewed IRS human capital and emergency preparedness policies and strategic plans, observed campus operations and emergency working group meetings, and interviewed officials from headquarters and each of the four business units.

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## Topics

Tax Policy and Administration

AccountabilityAgency missionsDecision makingEmergency preparednessEmergency response plansEmployee trainingEmployeesFederal agency reorganizationHomeland securityHuman capitalHuman capital planningInteragency relationsInternal controlsLessons learnedPerformance managementPerformance measuresRisk assessmentStaff utilizationStrategic planningSurveysTax administrationTestingFederal agency leadership