Pulse2 Technology and Social Media News » Vivek Kundra

New White House CIO Steven VanRoekel Is A Former Microsoft Exec

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 01:34:10 +0000

Steven VanRoekel is the current managing director of the FCC and was a former Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) executive. VanRoekel will become the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the federal government on Thursday where he will be responsible for the $80 billion per year IT budget.

The CIO government position is pretty new as it was created by Obama’s administration. Responsibilities include managing the IT budget and improving security practices.

Before working at the FCC, VanRoekel was a Microsoft executive in the Windows Server and Tools division. Before VanRoekel, Vivek Kundra served as the CIO.

Kundra worked there until March 2009 and introduced products like the IT Dashboard, which is a public website that tracks the spending and progress of federal IT projects. Kundra also encouraged the government to depend on cloud computing rather than the desktop.

[NYT]

US Government Plans Shutdown of 800 Data Centers

Riley Kennysmith — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 17:29:16 +0000

The US government plans to shut down 800 of its 2000 computer data centers over the next four years. The New York Times reports that the 40% cutback will allow the federal government to reduce their technology budget and to update their systems. The change could mean saving $5 billion a year, according to chief information officer Vivek Kundra, as the centers scheduled to close are “redundant systems.”

This will likely mean the elimination of tens of thousands of jobs, which could lead to backlash from the public, but the purpose of the changes is to save money and update the systems. The government is already saving expenses by using cloud-based email. The General Services Administration now uses Google services, and the Agriculture Department uses a Microsoft cloud service, which has saved the government more than $40 million per year.

What Was Vivek Kundra’s Theft Conviction? Going Klepto At J.C. Penney In 1996.

Amit Chowdhry — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 17:03:08 +0000

As you may remember, last week the FBI raided the offices of Vivek Kundra. Kundra was nominated by Barack Obama to be the CIO of the White House. When Kundra was 22, he was charged with a misdemeanor theft (less than $300). That charge has come back to haunt him today. So what did he actually steal? Four shirts worth $134 from J.C. Penney.

Each shirt was worth $33.50. The crime took place in 1996 and he was charged in 1997. The crime took place in Montgomery County, Maryland. Kundra was caught putting the shirts in a shopping bag and he left without paying. Sgt. Tom Stanton noticed the crime being committed and there was a brief foot chase. The property was recovered shortly after.

Should The White House hold this against him? They decided not to. This is understandable because every politician has some sort of skeleton in their closet. Remember how our last President was arrested for getting a DUI in 1976? That didn’t stop him from becoming President.

[via TBI]

Two Arrested By FBI At Offices Of New White House CIO Vivek Kundra

Amit Chowdhry — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 19:01:52 +0000

FBI agents have raided the offices of Vivek Kundra, a man that was elected to become President Obama’s chief information officer according to FOX News. Kundra was preparing to leave the D.C. chief technology officer position to join Obama’s administration. There is supposedly corruption in the office, but is not tied to Kundra. Two arrests have been made.

The FBI has arrested government worker Yusuf Acar and Advanced Integrated Technologies Corp. employee Sushil Bansal. Both of these individuals will be appearing in court today. “It’s an ongoing law enforcement investigation,” stated FBI spokeswoman Lindsay Gotwin.

“Kundra will be fine. His aide will not,” stated a source at Wired.

Vivek Kundra Is The First White House CIO

Amit Chowdhry — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:50:42 +0000

Earlier today President Obama hired Vivek Kundra as the first Chief Information Officer of the White House. Vivek is formerly the CTO of the District of Columbia, serving under Mayor Adrian Fenty. Kundra was hired to push for the expansion of making the White House more high-tech. Kundra will also oversee federal technology spending, information sharing between agencies, and monitor security and piracy.

Obama will also be responsible to “lower the cost of government operations,” according to the New York Times. Kundra was born in India and lived in Tanzania until age 11. After that he moved to Gaithersburg in Mayland. Kundra moved post city contracts on YouTube, made Twitter common in his office, and hopes to allow drivers pay parking tickets and renew driver licenses on Facebook.

Kundra’s website Digital Public Square offers information about crime, parking, tourism, free wi-fi spots around the area, leaf-collection schedules, and a widget with live-snow progress in D.C. Kundra launched a contest on the website in October called “Apps for Democracy.” Kundra hopes to help the White House save $2.6 million over what it usually costs to hire contract developers.

Kundra has a Masters of Science in information technology from the University of Maryland and was the assistant secretary of commerce and technology in Virginia.