Who will be the federal CIO?

Carolyn Purcell: executive director of the Texas Department of Information Resources. She was recently named one of the most powerful Texans in high technology by Texas Monthly business magazine. She has more than 25 years of experience in the information technology industry in government, manufacturing and health care. She is the former president of the National Association of State Information Resource Executives and is currently chairwoman of the National Electronic Commerce Coordinating Council, an alliance of state CIOs and others promoting electronic government in the states. She would bring excellent management skills to the job and considerable experience in making e-government work in Texas. She understands the considerable challenges facing government and how to move it from legacy systems to seamless online systems; after all, she did exactly that in Texas.

Floyd Kvamme: an early Bush supporter and fundraiser. He was one of five members of the team that joined National Semiconductor Corp. in 1967 and built it into a billion-dollar company. He served as president of the National Advanced Systems subsidiary, which designed, manufactured and marketed large computer systems, before leaving to become executive vice president of sales and marketing for Apple Computer Inc. While at Apple, his responsibilities included worldwide sales, marketing, distribution and support. He would be a bridge to the private sector with his understanding of what industry wants from government and how to deliver it efficiently. He's a partner in the Menlo Park, Calif., venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, which helped launch Netscape Communications Corp. and Amazon.com.

Donald Upson: the Commonwealth of Virginia's first secretary of technology. Appointed by Governor James Gilmore on May 21, 1998, Upson brought more than two decades of government, corporate and high-technology experience to Virginia's state government. He is the first state cabinet secretary to have the responsibility of ensuring coordinated planning and effective development of a state's public-sector IT resources while also working with the state's fast-growing IT private sector. He knows how to make government deliver the best services and how to do it effectively and efficiently.

Stephen Goldsmith: served two terms as mayor of Indianapolis in the 1990s and was Bush's chief domestic policy adviser during the presidential campaign. He has said that although e-government is providing better services to taxpayers, technology alone cannot do the job. He supports government working with the private sector to close the digital divide and is not afraid of trying new things. He is known in IT circles as the man who was "e-government before there was e-government." While the mayor of Indianapolis, he privatized the city's waste water treatment and correction facilities, but he has said that privatization is not always a true reform.

James Barksdale: former chief executive officer of Netscape. He joined the company in 1995, after serving as CEO of AT&T Wireless Services. Previously, he spent 12 years at Federal Express Corp., where he served as CIO from 1979 to 1983, overseeing the development and implementation of the company's world-renowned customer service and package-tracking systems. In 1983, he became executive vice president and chief operating officer, overseeing the company's growth from $1 billion to $7.7 billion in revenue and its expansion into 135 countries. Barksdale was one of several top industry executives who helped Bush formulate technology policy during his campaign and transition. He has been mentioned repeatedly for a post in the new administration; however, it is likely he would choose to stay outside government and use his access to Bush to lobby for industry issues.

Bush's IT roundtable

President George W. Bush's "kitchen cabinet" of technology advisers is likely to look for bigger solutions for government and lean on its private-sector experience in developing information technology as an integral part of American life.

In addition to possible IT czar nominees Floyd Kvamme, Donald Upson and James Barksdale, Bush has a circle of IT advisers from his campaign who likely will influence his ideas for the federal IT community.

They include:

From the federal sector

Tim Adams, former vice president of the G7 Group, a consulting firm that analyzes economic and policy issues. Sandy Kress, partner at the Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld LLP law firm who is advising Bush on education issues. From industry

Michael Dell, chairman and chief executive officer of Dell Computer Corp. John Chambers, president and CEO of Cisco Systems Inc. Scott McNealy, chairman and CEO of Sun Microsystems Inc. From the states

William Eggers, who helped write a strategic plan for e-government in Texas. Steve Kolodney, Washington state CIO, a big supporter of digital government.