Page 19 - FCW, September 30, 2016

13Yes, you do have to
understand and play politics
(big and little p).
— Mary Davie, assistant commissioner for integrated technology services at GSA
14
Newcomers may
not fully appreciate
government ethics.
Do your best to explain. Give them a chance. But if you truly believe they are crossing the line, then you need to be ready to
act by reporting your concerns to appropriate folks — or find a new position.
— Anne Reed, former Agriculture Department CIO and ASI Government CEO
15Take time to understand
the culture of
the agency.
Typically, government
career staffers tend to be risk- averse and often view outside executives with skepticism. It’s important to understand the underlying governance model to discover the potential enablers and derailers of your priorities.
— Venkatapathi “PV” Puvvada, president of Unisys Federal
ON PROCESS 16Regardless of
party,
each administration wants
to have infrastructure and programs that work.
— Ira Hobbs, former CIO at the Treasury Department and deputy CIO at USDA
17
18Take
the time to
understand why an agency runs
the way it does.
When faced with an IT program that was over budget, behind schedule and not delivering the promised functionality, a former boss commented, “That turtle didn’t get on the fence post by itself.”
— Alan Balutis, a distinguished fellow and senior director at Cisco Systems and former Commerce Department CIO
Stand by your ethics.
From
Day One, acknowledge
19
Any technology applied to an
and accept the fact that meaningful, positive change takes time.
— Renee Wynn, NASA CIO
inefficient organization will continue to be inefficient.
— Kay Kapoor, president of AT&T Global Public Sector Solutions
FORMAN’S PARADOX:
Political appointees enter government wanting fast and substantive change but often hit a wall of resistance that kills the natural energy at the beginning of an administration. By month six, they become risk-averse. Technology is not the difficult
part of their jobs. The real challenge is managing change and people.To address this paradox, political appointees need to enter government with a strong, well-thought-out
risk management plan linked to a framework of
new tech and business models.
— MARK FORMAN, GLOBAL HEAD OF UNISYS PUBLIC SECTOR AND FORMER ADMINISTRATOR OF E-GOVERNMENT AND IT AT OMB
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