Trump Taps Financial Services Expert as Federal CIO

The White House on Friday announced President Donald Trump’s intent to appoint EY (Ernst & Young) Principal Suzette Kent as the next federal chief information officer. 

Kent will be the fourth person and first woman to hold this role in a permanent capacity. As a principal on EY’s banking and capital markets advisory team, Kent is responsible for driving strategic endeavors, delivering innovation, transforming technology, and transitioning organizations to alternative business models, according to her LinkedIn profile. She has more than 25 years of experience across treasury management, commercial banking and retail banking, and her past roles include managing director at JPMorgan and partner at Accenture. 

In her new role, Kent will provide direction to agencies on the use of technology and help set policy that will shape issues such as IT modernization, digital government and more. The White House did not provide specifics on what Kent would focus on first or make a priority.

“Although technology change has been at the core of her professional career, retooling the workforce and creating new opportunities for people has been an essential element of efforts that she has led,” according to the White House announcement.  “She has served as an enterprise leader for organizational learning, diversity and inclusiveness, and career development at every organization in which she has worked.”

As federal CIO, Kent will also hold the title of Administrator of the Office of Electronic Government and Information Technology. her position is appointed by the president and does not require Senate confirmation.

Deputy federal CIO Margie Graves has been serving as acting federal CIO. The government has been without a permanent federal CIO since Tony Scott left the role in January 2017, at the end of President Barack Obama’s second term.