Agarwal takes post at NIC

P.K. Agarwal will leave his post at the California Franchise Tax Board to

run the National Information Consortium's e-government operations.

As the chief information officer and executive vice president for e-government

applications, Agarwal will work to create new applications and continue

to advocate e-government internationally. "I want to continue to be on the

soapbox for e-government — almost an evangelist," he said.

To Agarwal, e-government is a revolution that cannot be ignored. "I

believe that the government of the 21st century is so different," he said.

"We all have to pay attention as it moves at warp speed."

Agarwal said he chose to enter the private sector because he feels

it is the best way for him to continue to advocate a revolution in government.

"I just came to the conclusion that I can continue my great passion

in e-government better in the private sector," he said. He said he sees

his job in the private sector as the same as it was in government, "working

to continue to transform government, but in a different hat."

He said he chose NIC because it has a "solid business model" and "is

truly an Internet Age company."

Agarwal has worked for state and local agencies for more than 30 years,

25 of which were in information technology. He has also served on various

national IT committees, including as the chairman of the National Electronic

Commerce Coordinating Council and president of the National Association

of State Information Resource Executives.