Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009 - (Page 30)

regularly under fire — it’s likely that even if the budget continues to rise it will be under the watchful eyes of auditors and agencies calling for a tangible return on investment. As for any significant expansions or contractions in the federal information work force, current projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics don’t reflect noteworthy changes in the coming years. Senior-level managers in general will experience a nominal drop by 2016, but in terms of computer-specific occupations, there will be a slight rise in the aggregate numbers of IT specialists. Some of these sectors, however, such as computer programmers, will decline more severely. In all, there are no terribly significant trends in force structure that will categorically change the demographic of information professionals within senior management or at the operator level. While the future force may portend only modest impact, evolving technologies stand to change the CIO position in ways that cannot yet be envisioned. Although the competencies of a federal leader will remain relatively timeless, they will not be entirely technology-neutral, especially for the CIO. Emerging trends in information systems will almost certainly be of consequence, as any number of dawning innovations may disrupt conventional government IT practices. Some of these oncoming technologies include the Semantic Web, new and vast improvements to processing and storage, and even the full redesign of the Internet itself. Taken together, these external factors will play into the IRMC’s strategic planning formula and contribute to the emerging picture of the next 20 years. “I can’t predict the future,” Childs said, “but I’d sure like to influence it. We’re going to do all we can to keep the CIO position relevant and value added. It’s really not about computers anymore; it’s about knowing the business operation and bringing the power of information to bear. It’s also about communicating on a leadership level — not ‘geek speak.’ Telling a compelling, consistent and understandable story may be the CIO’s most powerful weapon.” Childs sees an increasing need for CIOs to cross-pollinate at every level — DoD, state, local and international. By shaping this confluence of issues and ideas, the IRMC hopes to retain its visionary edge and bolster the clout and relevance of the CIO writ large. When asked how much bigger the college will be in the coming decades, Childs said, “Words like ‘bigger’ aren’t as important as ‘better.’ It’s not about how large the campus becomes, but how well we adapt to the professional landscape and serve our stakeholders’ needs.” As to the question of how relevant the office of the CIO will remain, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Facts About the Information Resources Management College: Established: November 1988 Certificates Available (Each consists of courses in residence or online): • • • • • • • Government Strategic Leader (new) Chief Financial Officer Leadership (new) CIO, Advanced Management Program Enterprise Architecture Information Assurance (five certificates in this area) Information Technology Project Management Organizational Transformation Other Services: Emerging Leader Workshops Customized “Education-in-Context” Programs will weigh heavily into that equation, especially for the federal sector. Clay Johnson III, deputy director of the OMB, sees an enduring need for the CIO who can harness IT’s power to make government more effective. This includes holding program managers accountable for delivering the functionality they promise — on time and on budget. “CIOs need to be business partners, clarifiers, problem solvers, managers and most importantly, results oriented,” Johnson said. Childs, too, sees a lasting need for a senior-level government professional who can prudently put IT to work. “The position may change within the margins, but the basic mandate is constant. As a school director, I simply want to improve the office through world-class education in the best, most appropriate academic setting there is.” In the end, a forward-looking curriculum may not be nearly as important as the pedigree and knowledge of the students who pass through the IRMC. These individuals, with a lifelong association and familiarity with IT’s power, may ultimately represent the most significant driver of the college’s foothold in the future, because their savvy and academic expectations will surely stoke the coals of new curricula and course offerings. With 20 years behind it, the IRMC has taken root as a significant player in the education of military, government, public- and private-sector professionals. Once an institute that catered solely to military leaders confronting new technologies, it has transformed its longstanding mandate into a new educational imperative — one that adds meaning and relevance to the office of the federal CIO and takes its traditional competencies in new and inventive directions. ¨ [30]

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009

Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009 Contents Contributors Introduction Tense Times Insider Threat Twenty and Counting Labor of Love Putting Process Into Play Crossover Appeal FastGov CIO Central Security Adviser CIOs Pluck BlackBerry Phones From the Field Straight Talk

Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009

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