McConnell joins growing list of feds fleeing government

BY William Matthews
01/14/2000 -- 14:52 EST

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/web-mcconnell-01-14-00.asp

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

One of the government's top Year 2000 trouble-shooters and an information policy expert for three presidents has decided to look for work in the private sector.

Bruce McConnell, head of the International Y2K Cooperation Center, said he will not return to the Office of Management and Budget this spring when the Y2K Cooperation Center shuts down but is "planning to go into the private sector in April."

"I want to help people manage the business risks and opportunities created by technology," McConnell said Thursday. He said he is interested in work at the international level, but he does not yet have a new job lined up.

An expert on security, privacy and encryption policy, McConnell began his federal career at OMB under President Reagan in 1985. During the Bush administration, he handled information policy. He helped craft guidelines governing the Clinger-Cohen Act and helped define the role of the Government Printing Office in the Electronic Age.

McConnell was chief of the information policy and technology branch in OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs when he was tapped to head the International Y2K Cooperation Center.

McConnell hailed the massive and successful effort to make computers ready for the Year 2000 as a triumph for government technology workers. "Y2K brought out the best in government project management," he said.

He conceded that his departure adds to the difficulty the federal government is having holding on to senior IT personnel, as many depart for higher-paying jobs in the private sector. "Everyone, including government and industry, is having trouble keeping good tech people," McConnell said.

And in a parting plug for the federal sector, he said, "No one in government is in it for the money. You've got to believe in the mission, and the government has some of the world's most exciting missions."

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 2000

Answers

DLA's chief info officer heads for industry

BY William Matthews
01/14/2000

http:// www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/web-dla-01-14-00.asp

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

The chief information officer of the Defense Logistics Agency is resigning to take an executive position at Electronic Data Systems Corp.

Carla von Bernewitz said Thursday she plans to leave her job as technology chief at DLA Feb. 1 to become a client delivery executive for information solutions at EDS. She said her work managing EDS contracts, such as the operation of data centers, will take her to New York, Boston, Hartford, Conn., and as far south as Rockville, Md.

A specialist in private-sector business re-engineering, von Bernewitz's marching orders at DLA were to modernize the agency's aged computer systems. "Replacing them does not begin to describe" the task, she said. Rather, she was hired "to kill" the old systems.

Von Bernewitz joined the federal government in 1994 after working at Vector Research Inc., a Michigan company that was doing work for the military. Initially, she intended to stay only five years. But after becoming CIO, she decided to stay an extra year to shepherd DLA through the Year 2000 computer compliance ordeal.

Among other things, von Bernewitz discovered during her tenure at DLA that, "Sometimes it is easier to change something...from the outside." One of the toughest problems to overcome is the slow pace at which government works, she said. "If we're going to compete with industry, we've got to do better."

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 2000.

Postal Service names new technology chief

BY Natasha Haubold
01/14/2000

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/web-postal-01-14-00.asp

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

Postmaster General William Henderson on Tuesday appointed Peter Jacobson as the agency's new chief technology officer.

Jacobson, who is returning to the Postal Service after five years in the private sector, will be responsible for managing the agency's overall technology base as well as developing new technologies to improve productivity and business development.

Jacobson, who first joined USPS in 1974, replaces Norm Lorentz who recently left to join earthweb.com, a business-to-business portal that provides information about IT issues, products and services.

Jacobson most recently served as president and chief executive officer of the parcel consolidation and distribution company, Paxis LLC. He was also vice president of worldwide business development sales, marketing and logistics operations at Lockheed Martin Corp.

During his 24 years with USPS, Jacobson served as an assistant postmaster general of engineering, regional postmaster general for the former Northeast Region and senior vice president of processing and distribution.

As chief technology officer Jacobson will focus on:

* Deploying technology that will support USPS' strategic plan.

* Developing new systems to provide real-time data and cost analysis of moving mail.

* Guiding USPS in its application of computers and telecommunication systems.

* Deploying strategic plans that will focus on the marketplace and improving the value of USPS services.

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 2000.

Hamre announces departure from Pentagon

BY Bob Brewin
01/10/2000 15:30 EST

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/web-hamre-01-10-00.asp

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

John Hamre, who put the clout of his office behind information technology policies, issues and causes during his term as deputy secretary of Defense, will leave the Pentagon March 31 to become president and chief executive officer of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C., think tank.

Secretary of Defense William Cohen said he recommended the presidential appointee Rudy De Leon, under secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, as Hamre's replacement.

Hamre supported IT issues and policies -- ranging from cybersecurity to electronic commerce to the Year 2000 bug -- with high-level visibility during the two years he served in the Pentagon's No. 2 post, which followed a four-year stint as comptroller starting in 1993. Prior to joining the Defense Department, Hamre spent 10 years on Capitol Hill as a staff aide. De Leon served as a Congressional aide on the staff of Les Aspin, the first secretary of Defense in the Clinton administration.

Olga Grkavac, senior vice president with the Information Technology Association of America's Enterprise Solutions Division, said Hamre "served as a champion" of IT issues and policies to an extent not seen with previous deputy secretaries, adding "he gave IT real visibility." Whether De Leon will have the same interest "is a good question," Grkavac said, "right now I just don't know."

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 2000.

Motto of this growing crowd of ex CIO's: VENI, VEDI, EXITUS STAGEUS RIGHTUS!!!

-- Jay Urban (Jayho99@aol.com), January 15, 2000.

Zere velly velly interesting catches, Diane on Java, eh?

-- Ashton & Leska in Cascadia (allaha@earthlink.net), January 15, 2000.

Just thought it was an "interesting" dot gov IT trend, so early in the Year 2000.

Observing "actions" not only words.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 2000.

Thanks for the post(s) Diane. It is so very easy to listen to the words and not see the actions. A very wise college professor once told me to read as much news as possible to really *see* whats happening. Collegiate Connect the Dots.

-- thankGawdfortheinternet (karlacalif@aol.com), January 15, 2000.