The Honorable Michael Powers currently serves as the Acting Under Secretary of War (Comptroller) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Prior to assuming this acting capacity, he was nominated and confirmed to serve as the Deputy Under Secretary of War (Comptroller).

In his current role as Acting Comptroller, Mr. Powers serves as the principal financial advisor to the Secretary of War, where he is responsible for leading the Department's enterprise-wide financial management, directing the formulation and execution of the defense budget, and overseeing all financial operations and modernization efforts. During his tenure as the confirmed Deputy Under Secretary, he managed the day-to-day financial operations of the Department, orchestrated critical audit remediation initiatives, and assisted the Comptroller in driving strategic fiscal objectives across the enterprise.

Michael Powers is a distinguished financial management executive with decades of experience leading large-scale financial operations and strategic initiatives within the U.S. Government. As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Defense Financial Manager (CDFM), and Department of Defense Financial Management Certification Level 3, he has a proven track record of successfully overseeing multi-billion-dollar budgets and driving significant organizational improvements. His career is highlighted by his tenure as the Acting Comptroller and Chief Financial Officer for the U.S. Army, where he served as the principal financial advisor to senior leadership and was responsible for the preparation and execution of the Army's $177 billion budget.

Throughout his career, Mr. Powers has spearheaded major transformation efforts that have resulted in substantial efficiencies and cost savings. While serving as the Army's top financial officer, he led initiatives to implement robotic process automation (RPA), retire 57 legacy IT systems to save $260 million annually, and champion an automated vendor invoicing process that cut errors by 98 percent. His leadership extends to high-pressure deployed environments, where he managed the $20.9 billion budget for the Afghanistan National Security Forces and the $18.4 billion Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund, demonstrating exceptional skill in managing complex international programs.

Mr. Powers' extensive expertise is built on a solid foundation of progressively responsible roles across various government agencies. He began his career in auditing before advancing to senior executive positions, including Deputy Director roles at the Office of the Secretary of War and the U.S. Department of the Interior, where he was instrumental in the department achieving its first-ever clean financial statement audit without any material weaknesses. As a consultant, he provided expert financial and strategic advice to the Department of the Army, Defense Health Agency, Defense Logistics Agency, and other defense organizations.