TECHNOLOGY AND THE BUSINESS OF GOVERNMENT
Federal IT professionals to receive new program manager status
By Aliya Sternstein 03/30/2011
The Obama administration has proposed creating a new federal position -- information technology program manager -- to help reverse the multiyear delays and multimillion-dollar losses that agency computing projects traditionally accrue. The new position is part of a 25-point strategy unveiled late last year for changing the way the government buys IT systems and services.
The Office of Personnel Management on Tuesday issued a draft job description for the new title. The position's responsibilities include coordinating,
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The post involves managing at least one "large" IT program "to provide products and/or services." A project is a singular endeavor with a tangible outcome that starts and stops during a short period of time,
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IT program manager will be added to a category of jobs known as the IT Management 2210 series. All jobs in the series require knowledge of information technology concepts, including data storage, software applications and networking. Other positions in this class include project manager and IT specialist.
Establishing a career path for IT program managers is the centerpiece of the technology management overhaul, which also focuses on centralizing purchasing power at the office of the chief information officer, increasing communication with potential vendors early in the bidding process and outsourcing IT services to online hardware and software providers in the cloud.
Eventually, programs will be denied funding unless they are staffed by a dedicated program manager, according to the plan. The White House has instructed OPM to design a formal IT program management career roadmap by June that includes direct hiring authority. Agency officials currently are consulting with subject matter experts to develop a competency model for IT program managers and will survey federal employees for feedback in April, according to administration officials.
Bolstering program management is one of the least controversial IT reforms, but funding for education, new jobs and promotions might be hard to get from Congress in a tight economy. Administration officials said previously that they expected to provide $158 million in fiscal 2011 for training and hiring civilian acquisition professionals.
Program management enthusiasts said the discipline will be attractive to youth entering the federal workforce because it involves heading up major initiatives,
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An announcement about the new title on the CIO.gov federal website,
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Interested members of the public and employees have until April 14 to comment on the new title.
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