VA's Baker Bolsters Customer Service, Security Teams

Roger Baker, chief information officer at the Veterans Affairs Department, recently appointed three advocates to ensure the 300,000 VA employees he views as valued customers of the CIO's office receive top-notch information technology service.

These customer advocates -- all with Senior Executive Service stripes -- will serve as ombudsmen to the VA Office of Information & Technology, Baker said, and bring a wealth of experience to their jobs. They are:

• Customer Advocate for Benefits

  Stan Lowe, former CIO at the Federal Trade Commission

• Customer Advocate for Health

  Charles "Chuck" Hume, former deputy CIO of the Veterans Health Administration and former deputy CIO of the Military Health System

• Customer Advocate for Corporate

  Jacquelyn "Jackie" Patillo, former deputy CIO at the Transportation Department.

Baker, during his monthly press call Wednesday on data breaches, said he also has beefed up his information security team, this August hiring Jerry Davis, NASA's chief information security officer, as VA's deputy assistant secretary for information security.

Baker also signed on Tina Burnette as executive director for enterprise risk management. Burnette's federal background includes stints as acquisition director for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and assistant deputy commissioner for commercial acquisition at the General Services Administration's Federal Supply Service.