Karen Evans Named Vice Chairwoman Of CIO Council

The CIO Council on Wednesday elected Karen Evans, CIO at the Department of Energy, as its vice chairwoman. Evans, a 20-year government IT employee, replaces former Treasury CIO Jim Flyzik, a special adviser for IT at Homeland Security, who's retiring next month. Flyzik served as vice chairman for seven years.

Evans is well-suited for the post. She's a leader in reining in IT spending by getting agencies to share technologies, CIO Council chairman Mark Forman says. Evans recently bought more enterprise licenses for electronic-signature technology than the department needs, with the extra licenses to be shared with other agencies. That means the other agencies needn't create or procure their own E-signature apps, steps that certainly would cost more than buying added licenses. Now, Forman says, the Office of Management and Budget won't authorize spending on redundant E-signature projects.

Before joining the Energy Department in January, Evans directed the Justice Department's information-resources management division within the Office of Justice Programs, where she oversaw IT projects to expedite processing of claims benefits to families of public-safety officers killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and implemented an online grants-management system. Before that, she served as the assistant director for IS at Justice's headquarters, where she managed Internet resources, including E-mail and security services. Earlier in her carrier, Evans worked as an IT manager with the National Park Service, the Office of Personnel Management, Farmers Home Administration, and the Department of Agriculture. She holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry and an MBA from West Virginia University.

The CIO Council is a group of senior federal departmental and agency CIOs charged with developing governmentwide IT programs, systems, and standards. It's chaired by Forman, the OMB's associate director for IT and E-government--the highest-ranking IT post in government. The vice chair comes from the ranks of departmental CIOs.