Profiles in leadership in government IT

The winners of this year’s GCN IT Leadership Awards are a highly diversified bunch.They range from a Defense Finance and Accounting Service technology services director in Kansas City, Mo., who manages four DFAS branches and 147 software engineers, to a chief lifeguard in Los Angeles who spearheaded the installation of a network of remote cameras, weather stations and water thermometers along county beaches.A couple of them have ventured into war zones as part of their jobs, but they are all heroic risk-takers in one way or another.They’ve all demonstrated essential qualities of leadership—sustained and exceptional accomplishment, the ability to spur co-workers to higher achievement and an inclination to take innovative approaches to problem-solving and program-building. But that’s where the similarities end. Turn the page to read about 10 managers who have made a difference.