USPS names Cochrane as CIO

The U.S. Postal Service selected its new CIO, and didn’t have to look far to find him.

USPS selected 39-year postal veteran James Cochrane for the role, according to an Oct. 25 memo from Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe.

Cochrane has served as acting CIO since former CIO Ellis Burgoyne retired Oct. 1.

Like Burgoyne before him, Cochrane has spent his entire career at USPS, including 25 years in operations in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan and northern Virginia areas.

Prior to stepping into the C-suite, Cochrane served as vice president of product information for USPS, where he oversaw IT innovations in tracking systems, including the Intelligence Mail barcode and Intelligent Mail package barcode. Cochrane’s tenure as vice president of product information coincided with “record high service levels” in those areas, according to Donahoe.

With budget difficulties and continued pressure from Congress to cut spending, Cochrane will be in the challenging position of overseeing technology and innovation in one of the largest IT organizations in the world

“As the Postal Service continues initiatives to add value to the mail for our customers, technology and information products and services are increasingly important to our corporate strategy, and [Cochrane] is well-suited to lead our efforts in those areas,” Donahoe said.

Cochrane’s main focus will be on advancements in new mail intelligence, engineering and IT systems, payment technology and corporate information security.