Obama's Tech Team

Techies now run much of government. And they're not the programmers in the IT shop.

The co-founder of a nonprofit that works on bridging the digital divide now advises the secretary of State. A former IBM vice president who focused on innovation as head of public sector strategy is the No. 2 executive at the Veterans Affairs Department. The secretary at the Homeland Security Department chose a former chief information officer as her chief of staff for management. The official in charge of General Services Administration outreach to the American public learned management theory while conducting audits on federal information technology programs at the Government Accountability Office. And John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, changed the agency's org chart to make sure his CIO will report directly to him and have broader responsibilities. Many of these positions aren't typically held by people who are comfortable talking geek speak. But it's clear: President Obama's political appointees understand that the smart management of technology, not simply the tools themselves, can be a primary driver to improve how government operates - and even influence policy.

Many inside and outside government say the Obama administration gets it, understanding that technology should be part of policy discussions because it powers innovation and performance, much like it does for businesses. While the first Internet president has contributed to this high-tech management strategy, other factors might be as integral to what has amounted to a tectonic mental shift in how the government operates, say former federal executives and corporate contractors.

Budget cuts are forcing agencies to get creative, and a new generation of wired (and wireless) workers is pushing even unwilling Luddites to learn how to blog and Tweet. In addition, the Obama team tacitly recognizes that the Bush administration laid the groundwork for all this with its President's Management Agenda - reforms that rated agencies on expanding electronic government, among other things. But Obama has given technology an even higher profile, pressuring agencies to be innovative and employ online tools to boost performance.