Management agenda tops CIO survey

The top priority for federal chief information officers is implementing the President's Management Agenda, according to a report released today from the Information Technology Association of America.

However, getting money for e-government is a challenge for many CIOs, since the effort has not been well coordinated in the budget cycle and many agencies turn to other programs for funding to meet the requirements in the agenda, according the ITAA's 14th annual survey of CIOs.

Achieving a green, or satisfactory score in the five areas of the management agenda — budget and performance integration, e-government, strategic use of human capital, improved financial management and competitive sourcing — remains a main concern for CIOs, the report states.

The report, sponsored by ITAA and supported by Grant Thornton's Global Public Sector Group, involved interviews with 40 CIOs and information resource managers in 37 organizations and included six members of the defense and intelligence communities. The officials were interviewed last year between August and December.

"Federal CIOs are moving from the design phase to implementation in many areas, and the private sector supports that," said Alvin Pesachowitz, chair of ITAA's CIO survey task group in a statement.

"We commend the CIOs we interviewed for getting down to the business of better government," he said. "While much work remains to be done, CIOs are key catalysts for change when implementing the President's Management Agenda throughout the government."

CIOs also noted that improving information security was a major priority. They also identified security issues around the development of the Homeland Security Department, according to the ITAA.