White House Hires Unisys Exec To Head Up E-Gov't WorkWhite House Hires Unisys Exec To Head Up E-Gov't Work

The Bush administration has drafted Unisys Corp. exec Mark Forman to catapult federal agencies into the Internet age. Like the Clinton administration before it, the Bush team says it intends to do away with costly paper-intensive processes and embrace new technology.

As the nation's first associate director for IT and E-government, Forman is to develop a federal IT policy and ensure that agencies use the Internet to improve internal and external communication. He'll be responsible for managing Bush's proposed E-government fund, which would help promote the use of digital signatures, E-procurement, and other cost-saving technologies throughout federal agencies. Forman will begin his new job June 25, reporting to Mitchell Daniels Jr., director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Forman is VP of Unisys' E-business federal government and global public-sector groups. He develops E-government strategies for both the public and private sectors. In fact, Forman has served as a senior advisor to the U.S. Senate on IT issues and was a staff member of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, which enacted such laws as the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act, the Information Technology Management Reform Act, and the Paperwork Reduction Act. Unisys has not appointed a replacement for Forman.