Interesting news that Bill McCluggage, former UK Deputy Government CIO, has been appointed Irish Government CIO. He left UK Government in November 2011 (see Deputy UK Government CIO resigns) to take on a position as Chief Technologist, EMC UK & Ireland. The role allowed him to spend more time in his hometown. According to Twitter his new role in Dublin suits him even better and allows him to drive to work!
Of course, McCluggage has a long history of working in Government. Prior to his Cabinet Office role he worked for four years in the Delivery & Innovation Division of the Department of Finance & Personnel (Northern Ireland) including as Northern Ireland CIO and Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO). Just this year, he was awarded IT Professional of the Year by the Belfast Branch of the British Computer Society. His role with the Irish Government will see him take ultimate responsibility for the ICT strategy for Government and the wider public sector. He will also lead the CIO council and drive the implementation of the e-Government and cloud computing strategies. He will report to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin.
Perhaps most interesting from a supplier perspective is that this is the first time the Irish Government has appointed a CIO; perhaps McCluggage’s appointment will drive some new ICT opportunities as he focused on technology-enabled change.