Transitions

The President’s announcement today that Steven VanRoekel will be our nation’s next CIO comes at an important moment for our nation. As OMB works closely with the President and Vice President on the Campaign to Cut Waste, information technology (IT) is at the center of our efforts to save money, eliminate waste, and do more with less.

Over the last two and a half years, the Administration has made unprecedented strides (PDF) in transforming how the government manages and uses information technology to deliver results for the American people. From moving to more efficient cloud solutions and shutting down hundreds of duplicative data centers to reducing planned IT spending by $3 billion and bringing unprecedented transparency to IT spending. That progress has been the direct result of having a President who recognizes the opportunity to harness advances in technology to make government work better and more efficiently for the American people. That’s why President Obama appointed the nation’s first Federal Chief Information Officer to implement the Administration’s technology reform agenda.

As the nation’s first Federal Chief Information Officer, Vivek Kundra has left a lasting mark on Federal IT – from opening up data in new and innovative ways, to rooting out waste and duplication in IT spending, to steering the Federal government toward more energy efficient and cost effective technologies. And in this time of budgetary and fiscal challenges, sustaining and expanding on those efforts is more important than ever.

That’s why I am pleased that the President has appointed Steven VanRoekel as our next federal CIO. Steve is the right person to continue our efforts to make the government more efficient and more responsive to the America people. He brings a lifelong passion for technology to the position, having spent his entire career in technology in both the public and private sectors. 

Under his leadership, I am confident that we will continue to build on the remarkable gains that we have made in changing the way the Federal government manages IT. 

In another critical transition, Xav Briggs will be leaving us as Associate Director for General Government Programs and return to his post as a tenured member of the faculty at MIT. Xav has been at the center of some of the toughest and most important issues facing the country, and I thank him for his extraordinary service here at OMB, and wish him well.

Replacing Xav is Dana Hyde, who has been Senior Policy Advisor to the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Budget, advising both me and Tom Nides. Dana’s experience also includes serving as General Counsel for the Office of Presidential Personnel and serving on the Obama-Biden Transition Team and the staff of the 9/11 Commission. She also worked in the Clinton White House, as Special Assistant to the President for Cabinet Affairs; served at the Justice Department; and practiced law in private practice.   Having worked closely with Dana, I know that she will be a great addition to the OMB team.

Jack Lew is the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.