OMB's First CTO Is Key Architect In E-Government PlansOMB's First CTO Is Key Architect In E-Government Plans

The first chief technology officer for the Office of Management and Budget--the White House unit charged with overseeing the Bush administration's E-government initiatives--brings to his new job extensive experience in government and business.

Norman Lorentz, a former senior VP and chief technology officer at the U.S. Postal Service, began work this month and reports to Mark Forman, OMB's associate director for IT and E-government. Lorentz will be a key architect in the administration's 23 E-government initiatives, says OMB spokeswoman Jennifer Wood. The initiatives are aimed at electronically linking governmental agencies in an effort to improve collaboration among agencies as well as simplifying access by the public and business to governmental services over the Web.

Lorentz returns to government service after spending the past two years as senior VP and chief technology officer at the online employment service Dice Inc. in New York. At the U.S. Postal Service, where he worked from 1996 to 2000, he oversaw a $1 billion annual budget and managed 1,500 IT workers. The USPS Board of Governors conferred Lorentz its leadership excellence award after he oversaw the launching of the service's CustomerPerfect Management System, an IT-based internal process that assesses the needs of the Postal Service, its customers, and its employees by monitoring the marketplace, creating business plans, and initiating improvements. Before joining the Postal Service, Lorentz served as a senior executive at US West for 18 years.