Organizational Structure<\/h2>\n
Our office has approximately 128 staff organized into three primary directorates: the Investigations Directorate; the Management and Operations Directorate; and the Compliance and Oversight Directorate. We are headquartered in Washington, D.C.
<\/p>\n
- \n
- Assistant Secretary\n
- \n
- Deputy Assistant Secretary\n
- \n
- Executive Director, Investigations Directorate\n
- \n
- Director, Investigative Attorney Division<\/li>\n
- Director, Investigations Division<\/li>\n
- Director, Intake and Referral Division<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Executive Director, Compliance and Oversight Directorate\n
- \n
- Director, Compliance Analytics and Reporting Division<\/li>\n
- Director, Special Reviews Division<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Director, Quality Division<\/li>\n
- Director, Stakeholder Engagement Division<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Chief of Staff\n
- \n
- Director, Resource Management and Operations Division<\/li>\n
- Director, Information Systems Management Division<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>–>\n\n
The Deputy Assistant Secretary serves as the alter ego to the Assistant Secretary and oversees the Quality and Stakeholder Engagement divisions. The Compliance and Oversight Directorate and Investigations Directorate report under the Deputy Assistant Secretary through Executive Directors.<\/p>\n\n
Policy, Procedures, and Special Projects Division<\/h3>\n\nEvaluates and develops policies and procedures to drive greater efficiency, consistency, and excellence in OAWP operations.\n\n
Stakeholder Engagement Division<\/h3>\n\nManages our relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, to include Members of Congress, Congressional staff, other agencies of government, Veteran Service Organizations, whistleblower advocacy groups and the media. Oversees our Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act programs.\n\n
The Chief of Staff leads this Directorate which encompasses the Information Systems Management Division and Resource Management and Operations Division.<\/p>\n\n
Information Systems Management Division<\/h3>\n\nImplements and maintains our information systems and supports our portfolio of products, services and processes from research and ideation through detailed design and delivery. The division collaborates with the Compliance Division to identify trends from audits and investigations so that VA can proactively address areas of concern.\n\n
Resource Management and Operations Division<\/h3>\n\nAdvises on human resources, budget, contracting, workforce planning, employee engagement, training, and internal management controls.\n\n
The Executive Director for Investigations reports to the Deputy Assistant Secretary. The Directorate encompasses the Intake and Referral Division, Investigative Attorney Division, and Investigations Division. The Directorate’s Operations and Training Section develops and provides education and training on whistleblower rights and protections in addition to overseeing VA’s certification under the U.S. Office of Special Counsel’s 5 U.S.C. 2302(c) whistleblower certification program.<\/p>\n\n
Intake & Referral Division<\/h3>\n\nReceives, reviews, and records all incoming matters involving allegations of senior leader misconduct and poor performance, whistleblower retaliation, and whistleblower disclosures submitted by VA employees or applicants for employment. Transmits or refers matters to the appropriate offices for investigation.\n\n
Investigative Attorney Division<\/h3>\n\nInvestigates allegations of VA senior leader misconduct and poor performance, and allegations of whistleblower retaliation by VA supervisors. Makes recommendations for disciplinary and corrective actions for substantiated allegations.\n\n
The Executive Director for Compliance and Oversight reports to the Deputy Assistant Secretary. The Directorate encompasses the Compliance Analytics and Reporting Division and Special Reviews Division.<\/p>\n\n
Compliance Analytics and Reporting Division<\/h3>\n\n
Provides a detailed justification to Congress if the Secretary receives a recommendation for disciplinary action under subsection 38 USC 323(c)(1)(I) and does not take or initiate the recommended disciplinary action within the established timeframe. Records, tracks and confirms implementation of recommendations from audits and investigations carried out by the OIG, OMI, OSC, and GAO, including the imposition of disciplinary actions and other corrective actions contained in such recommendations. Analyzes data from OAWP, other whistleblower disclosures and relevant audits and investigations to identify trends and issue reports to the Secretary based on analyses conducted. Tracks whistleblower settlements across VA.<\/p>\n\n
Special Reviews Division<\/h3>\n\n
Pursuant to 38 USC \u00a7\u00a7 323(c)(1)(A), (B), and (F), conducts non-investigative<\/span> Program Reviews and Whistleblower Protection Reviews to advise the Secretary on all matters related to accountability, retaliation against whistleblowers and other such matters the Secretary considers similar and affect public trust in the Department.<\/p>\n
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- Program Reviews evaluate the VA enterprise-wide programs or operations for compliance, efficiency, effectiveness, and improvements or review implementation of recommendations and effectiveness thereof from audits and investigations carried out by the OIG, the OMI, the OSC, and the GAO.<\/li>\n
- Whistleblower Protection Reviews evaluate the whistleblower reporting culture at the VA facility or office, providing a voice for employees and feedback for improvements to leaders in order to promote a reporting culture of trust, transparency, and accountability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Investigations Division<\/h3>\n\nThe Investigative Attorney Division provides legal support and assistance to OAWP regarding investigations, reviews investigative work-product, and prepares reports of investigation and recommendations, including recommendations for disciplinary action against VA senior leaders and supervisors.\n\n
Roles and Responsibilities<\/h2>\n\nOffice of the Deputy Assistant Secretary\n\nCompliance and Oversight Directorate\n\nInvestigations Directorate\n\nManagement and Operations Directorate\n\n
{post_title}<\/h1>\n\n
Organizational Structure<\/h2>\n
![\"Organizational](\"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/accountability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/02\/OAWP_Org_Chart_ab6c8b.png?w=960\")
<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mission <!– The Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP) serves Veterans, employees, and other stakeholders by protecting whistleblowers and fostering individual and organizational accountability across VA, through advice, reports, and recommendations to the Secretary and to Congress; training on whistleblower rights and protections; unbiased investigations into alleged senior leader misconduct and whistleblower retaliation; and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-92","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/accountability\/about\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"WebPage","headline":"About the Office","url":"http:\/\/department.va.gov\/accountability\/about\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/department.va.gov\/accountability\/about\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":""},"articleSection":"Uncategorized","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Department of Veterans Affairs (smw)"}],"creator":["Department of Veterans Affairs (smw)"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Accountability and Whistleblower Protection","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2023-10-27T18:49:07Z","datePublished":"2023-10-27T18:49:07Z","dateModified":"2026-08-05T16:42:15Z"},"rendered":"
- Executive Director, Investigations Directorate\n
- Deputy Assistant Secretary\n