THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 15, 2009
President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts
WASHINGTON - Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key administration posts:
* Scott Quehl, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Administration, Department of Commerce
Scott Quehl, Nominee for Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Administration, Department of Commerce
Scott Quehl is President of Quehl Advisors, LLC, and a Senior Managing Director at Public Resources Advisory Group, providing advice to state and local governments on capital market, budgeting, and management initiatives. Quehl served as Managing Director for Tax-Exempt Capital Markets at JPMorgan Securities, Inc. While a Managing Director at Public Financial Management, Inc., he served as a management and budget advisor to several local and state authorities. During his tenure at Public Financial Management, Quehl took a leave of absence to serve as acting, then permanent, Chief Financial Officer of the Metropolitan Police Department for the District of Columbia. In the Executive Office of the President of the United States, he served as a member of the Clinton Administration in the Office of Management & Budget, Office of Federal Financial Management. Before this, he served as The World Bank's Country Officer for the Dominican Republic in a consulting capacity, co-managed the development of Secondary Education Project for the Dominican Republic, and advised the Governments of Colombia and Bolivia on the decentralization of financial and management authority to sub-national governments. He also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Sabanagrande, Honduras. He has written articles and reports for The World Bank Group, Brookings Review, and Government Finance Review. Quehl holds a Master's in Government Administration from the University of Pennsylvania, Bachelor's in History and Political Science from Lawrence University, and held FINRA NASD Series 24, 63, and 7 licenses while at JPMorgan.
Showing posts with label Transition. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transition. Show all posts
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Friday, July 31, 2009
More Management Nominations
President Obama on Thursday filled out some of his remaining administration management positions, nominating Daniel Werfel as controller of the Office of Federal Financial Management at the Office of Management and Budget.
Werfel has served as deputy controller since March 2006 and as acting controller during the administration transition. As controller, Werfel will manage the day-to-day operations of the Chief Financial Officers' Council, run the government's financial management improvement plan and coordinate OMB policy on areas such as financial reporting, audits, internal controls, fraud and error reduction, and grants management.
"His leadership in implementing the Recovery Act is just one example of his stellar work over many years - work that led the administration to recognize what those who have worked with him have known for years: Danny's an extraordinarily able public servant," OMB Director Peter Orszag said in a blog post Thursday evening.
Werfel has served as deputy controller since March 2006 and as acting controller during the administration transition. As controller, Werfel will manage the day-to-day operations of the Chief Financial Officers' Council, run the government's financial management improvement plan and coordinate OMB policy on areas such as financial reporting, audits, internal controls, fraud and error reduction, and grants management.
"His leadership in implementing the Recovery Act is just one example of his stellar work over many years - work that led the administration to recognize what those who have worked with him have known for years: Danny's an extraordinarily able public servant," OMB Director Peter Orszag said in a blog post Thursday evening.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
DorobekInsider: New DOT CFO nominee
The Obama administration has nominated Christopher P. Bertram to be the Transportation Department’s chief financial officer, otherwise known by the wonderful title of Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs.
From the White House write-up:
Christopher P. Bertram, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs and Chief Financial Officer, Department of TransportationChristopher P. Bertram is currently a professional staff member with the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In that position, he has been responsible for legislation related to aviation, auto and highway safety, transportation security, railroads, and fuel efficiency standards for automobiles. Prior to joining the Commerce Committee, Bertram served as the Federal Aviation Administration’s Assistant Administrator for Financial Services and Chief Financial Officer. Bertram earned a Master in Public Policy degree from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity University.
From the White House write-up:
Christopher P. Bertram, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs and Chief Financial Officer, Department of TransportationChristopher P. Bertram is currently a professional staff member with the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In that position, he has been responsible for legislation related to aviation, auto and highway safety, transportation security, railroads, and fuel efficiency standards for automobiles. Prior to joining the Commerce Committee, Bertram served as the Federal Aviation Administration’s Assistant Administrator for Financial Services and Chief Financial Officer. Bertram earned a Master in Public Policy degree from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity University.
Friday, June 26, 2009
US Treasury names new head of financial management
WASHINGTON, June 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department said on Friday it has appointed David Lebryk as commissioner of the Financial Management Service, a Treasury division responsible for government-wide accounting, revenue collection, tax refunds and benefits payments.
Lebryk, a veteran Treasury official who has served in a number of capacities, had been acting FMS commissioner since April 2009, when commissioner Judy Tillman retired. He had been deputy FMS commissioner since January 2008 and prior to that served five years as deputy director of the U.S. Mint.
In the past year, FMS has issued about one billion federal payments to more than 100 million people and collected nearly $3.2 trillion in federal revenues, the Treasury said.
Lebryk will oversee a daily cash flow of more than $67 billion and government-wide programs related to credit and cash management.
READ MORE...
Lebryk, a veteran Treasury official who has served in a number of capacities, had been acting FMS commissioner since April 2009, when commissioner Judy Tillman retired. He had been deputy FMS commissioner since January 2008 and prior to that served five years as deputy director of the U.S. Mint.
In the past year, FMS has issued about one billion federal payments to more than 100 million people and collected nearly $3.2 trillion in federal revenues, the Treasury said.
Lebryk will oversee a daily cash flow of more than $67 billion and government-wide programs related to credit and cash management.
READ MORE...
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Obama Picks Top Treasury Finance Posts
The president will nominate Washington's deputy mayor to oversee Treasury's finances and a real estate investment professional as the department's treasurer.
President Obama has chosen Daniel Tangherlini, deputy mayor of Washington, D.C. and former CFO of the District's police department, to oversee the finances of the U.S. Treasury Department.
If approved by the Senate, Tangherlini will be in charge of the department's budget and oversee various programs within the agency, including human resources, IT management, financial management and accounting, human capital, and strategic planning.
Obama recently announced he plans to nominate Tangherlini as the Treasury's assistant secretary for management, CFO, and chief performance officer, and Rosa Gumataotao Rios, managing director of investments for real-estate investment firm MacFarlane Partners, as treasurer. Obama has been widely criticized for not quickly filling the vacancies in the Treasury department since he took office.
READ MORE...
Sarah Johnson - CFO.com
President Obama has chosen Daniel Tangherlini, deputy mayor of Washington, D.C. and former CFO of the District's police department, to oversee the finances of the U.S. Treasury Department.
If approved by the Senate, Tangherlini will be in charge of the department's budget and oversee various programs within the agency, including human resources, IT management, financial management and accounting, human capital, and strategic planning.
Obama recently announced he plans to nominate Tangherlini as the Treasury's assistant secretary for management, CFO, and chief performance officer, and Rosa Gumataotao Rios, managing director of investments for real-estate investment firm MacFarlane Partners, as treasurer. Obama has been widely criticized for not quickly filling the vacancies in the Treasury department since he took office.
READ MORE...
Sarah Johnson - CFO.com
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Council for Excellence in Government Updates
The mission of the Council has remained constant throughout our 25 years of service and has made great strides in helping to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of government. Its goal is to be a comprehensive resource for the transition leaders and the new appointees in the next administration:
The Council recently launched its new website.
The Council has taken our “Prune Book” online for the first time. Prunes Online is a web-based resource providing the Prune job profiles for top appointed management posts, such as the FEMA Director, IRS Commissioner, and Social Security Commissioner. The comprehensive transition website offers a variety of resources for transition leaders, prospective nominees, the White House and Senate as well as the media and public, including:
The Council recently launched its new website.
The Council has taken our “Prune Book” online for the first time. Prunes Online is a web-based resource providing the Prune job profiles for top appointed management posts, such as the FEMA Director, IRS Commissioner, and Social Security Commissioner. The comprehensive transition website offers a variety of resources for transition leaders, prospective nominees, the White House and Senate as well as the media and public, including:
- A Survivors Guide for Presidential Nominees. Updated daily with current information and tips to navigate the appointments process.
- Online communities of interest to share insights and information about how to succeed, best practices and lessons learned.
The Council is also taking its Communities of Practice to the next level. Through strategic events and the new transition website, these Communities of Practice offer a variety of resources including best practices and links for current and acting CIOs, CFOs, CAOs, and other CXO-level individuals.
Council for Excellence in Government CFO Jobs Resource
CEG has a great article on the competency and qualification requirements, duties and responsibilities of Federal CFOs on its new website. The article includes background information including applicable statutes and laws, along with, CFO online resource links.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Orszag Promises More Oversight and Transparency
Peter R. Orszag, the nominee to head up the Office of Management and Budget faced a second day of Senate hearings before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
While Orszag's testimony on Tuesday focused primarily on budgetary concerns, today the conversation turned to government performance, retaining and recruiting Federal workers and procurement issues.
"If I am confirmed, I would seek an OMB Version 2.0, where those two arms of the agency are better integrated and you see a more unified whole between performance and budgeting," Orszag said in his opening remarks.
While he seemed focused on managerial issues, Orszag also faced several questions from senators about the budgetary aspects of his expected job, especially regarding the management and oversight of the Troubled Asset Relief Program and President-elect Barack Obama's proposed economic stimulus plan.
"We are thinking of special oversight and auditing processes for this," Orzsag said of oversight of the stimulus package. "We plan to create a Web site that will contain information about the contracts and include PDFs or contracts themselves and also financial information about the contracts."
Among other things, Orszag said he also favored a special oversight board composed of inspectors general and the new chief performance officer that would conduct regular meetings about problems identified by people tracking aspects of the economic recovery plan on the new Web site.
-Ed O'Keefe, WashingtonPost.com
READ MORE...
While Orszag's testimony on Tuesday focused primarily on budgetary concerns, today the conversation turned to government performance, retaining and recruiting Federal workers and procurement issues.
"If I am confirmed, I would seek an OMB Version 2.0, where those two arms of the agency are better integrated and you see a more unified whole between performance and budgeting," Orszag said in his opening remarks.
While he seemed focused on managerial issues, Orszag also faced several questions from senators about the budgetary aspects of his expected job, especially regarding the management and oversight of the Troubled Asset Relief Program and President-elect Barack Obama's proposed economic stimulus plan.
"We are thinking of special oversight and auditing processes for this," Orzsag said of oversight of the stimulus package. "We plan to create a Web site that will contain information about the contracts and include PDFs or contracts themselves and also financial information about the contracts."
Among other things, Orszag said he also favored a special oversight board composed of inspectors general and the new chief performance officer that would conduct regular meetings about problems identified by people tracking aspects of the economic recovery plan on the new Web site.
-Ed O'Keefe, WashingtonPost.com
READ MORE...
Monday, January 12, 2009
CPO pick signals emphasis on accountability
President-elect Barack Obama’s creation of a chief performance officer probably in the White House means he’s serious about pushing agencies to perform better, be accountable and transparent, and deliver significant results, say experts in federal management.
His choice of Nancy Killefer to be the first person to hold the position only amplifies that commitment.
Obama also indicated that program performance would be linked with budget reform as he warned of the possibility of trillion-dollar deficits for years to come.
Killefer, a senior director at McKinsey and Co., will help scour the federal budget line by line, “eliminating what we don’t need or what doesn’t work, and improving the things that do,” Obama said in announcing his choice.
He also intends to nominate her as the Office of Management and Budget’s deputy director for management.
Killefer’s track record spans government and the private sector. She served in three high-level positions — assistant secretary for management, chief financial officer and chief operating officer — in the Clinton administration’s Treasury Department.
She also led technology modernization efforts at the Internal Revenue Service and prepared Treasury’s computer systems for the Year 2000.
The CPO would lead a team to set ambitious performance targets and hold managers accountable for progress. However, Obama has not yet spelled out all the details of the position.
There will be some challenges in implementing Obama’s plans, Forman said.
The White House usually deals with agency leadership, but program managers are more directly involved in the performance and budget of individual programs, he said.
If Obama succeeds in making Killefer both CPO and OMB’s deputy director for management, she will have legal authority to tighten the link between program performance improvement and the budget, he said.
Bob Behn, a lecturer at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, said agencies must also attack performance gaps at lower levels of management. Agencies need to invest more in middle managers through training and mentoring because they must motivate their line staff to accomplish the strategies to improve performance.
-Mary Mosquera, FCW.com
READ MORE...
His choice of Nancy Killefer to be the first person to hold the position only amplifies that commitment.
Obama also indicated that program performance would be linked with budget reform as he warned of the possibility of trillion-dollar deficits for years to come.
Killefer, a senior director at McKinsey and Co., will help scour the federal budget line by line, “eliminating what we don’t need or what doesn’t work, and improving the things that do,” Obama said in announcing his choice.
He also intends to nominate her as the Office of Management and Budget’s deputy director for management.
Killefer’s track record spans government and the private sector. She served in three high-level positions — assistant secretary for management, chief financial officer and chief operating officer — in the Clinton administration’s Treasury Department.
She also led technology modernization efforts at the Internal Revenue Service and prepared Treasury’s computer systems for the Year 2000.
The CPO would lead a team to set ambitious performance targets and hold managers accountable for progress. However, Obama has not yet spelled out all the details of the position.
There will be some challenges in implementing Obama’s plans, Forman said.
The White House usually deals with agency leadership, but program managers are more directly involved in the performance and budget of individual programs, he said.
If Obama succeeds in making Killefer both CPO and OMB’s deputy director for management, she will have legal authority to tighten the link between program performance improvement and the budget, he said.
Bob Behn, a lecturer at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, said agencies must also attack performance gaps at lower levels of management. Agencies need to invest more in middle managers through training and mentoring because they must motivate their line staff to accomplish the strategies to improve performance.
-Mary Mosquera, FCW.com
READ MORE...
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Obama to include accountability in economic plan
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Barack Obama vowed Tuesday to bar lawmakers' pet projects from his massive economic stimulus plan and to bring unprecedented accountability to federal spending.
Even as he promised to fight waste and to make tough budgetary decisions, however, Obama warned that the nation could face trillion-dollar deficits for years go come. Eight years ago the federal budget ran a surplus, and the deficit on Sept. 30 was about $455 billion.
Two weeks before taking office, Obama said Americans will accept his proposed stimulus plan — expected to cost about $775 billion — only if they believe the money is being used wisely to boost the troubled economy and to make smart long-term investments in public projects.
He told reporters at his transition office that his package will set a "new higher standard of accountability, transparency and oversight. We are going to ban all earmarks, the process by which individual members insert projects without review."
Details of the plan, which has yet to be drafted as a bill, will be available online, Obama said, "so the American people will know where their precious tax dollars are going and whether we are hitting our marks." He promised to make difficult choices and to "eliminate outmoded programs and make the ones we do need work better." He did not specify which programs might be trimmed or eliminated.
Obama said he will create an "economic recovery oversight board" and bring "a long overdue sense of responsibility and accountability to Washington."
READ MORE...
Even as he promised to fight waste and to make tough budgetary decisions, however, Obama warned that the nation could face trillion-dollar deficits for years go come. Eight years ago the federal budget ran a surplus, and the deficit on Sept. 30 was about $455 billion.
Two weeks before taking office, Obama said Americans will accept his proposed stimulus plan — expected to cost about $775 billion — only if they believe the money is being used wisely to boost the troubled economy and to make smart long-term investments in public projects.
He told reporters at his transition office that his package will set a "new higher standard of accountability, transparency and oversight. We are going to ban all earmarks, the process by which individual members insert projects without review."
Details of the plan, which has yet to be drafted as a bill, will be available online, Obama said, "so the American people will know where their precious tax dollars are going and whether we are hitting our marks." He promised to make difficult choices and to "eliminate outmoded programs and make the ones we do need work better." He did not specify which programs might be trimmed or eliminated.
Obama said he will create an "economic recovery oversight board" and bring "a long overdue sense of responsibility and accountability to Washington."
READ MORE...
Monday, November 17, 2008
Nonprofits urge Obama to focus on program performance
A coalition of good government groups this week will add its wish list to a growing pile of advice for President-elect Barack Obama and the 111th Congress, ranking performance measurement and improvement as top priorities.
"Performance must be paramount if governing for excellence is to be attained and replicated," the Government Performance Coalition stated in draft recommendations. "Good policies and sound investments will fall short of the mark if anything less than exceptional performance is the predominate mode of operation."
The advocates for a more effective government urged Obama and Congress to set standards and demand accountability through a performance-based framework at executive and legislative branch agencies. This should include linking agency budgets with annual performance plans, developing outcome measures that focus on critical priorities, and applying an objective system to evaluate program and individual successes, the groups said.
They also recommended issuing short reports that give the public a better understanding of the government and fuel a more meaningful debate about fiscal priorities, performance results and future challenges.
The coalition called for greater investment in human resources, including recruiting, orienting, developing and retaining a productive federal workforce, and engaging in workforce planning to address future skills needs.
Finally, the coalition suggested promoting the strategic use of technology to reengineer work processes to improve service delivery and accountability. This also would help meet the expectations of an increasingly tech-savvy population by tapping the Internet to give people instant access to the government.
The coalition, which was founded in 2000 and consists of 18 good government groups, does not advocate specific policy programs or positions, but rather, presents lawmakers and the administration with tools they can use to formulate an effective government management agenda.
-Brittany Ballenstedt, GovExec.com
READ MORE...
"Performance must be paramount if governing for excellence is to be attained and replicated," the Government Performance Coalition stated in draft recommendations. "Good policies and sound investments will fall short of the mark if anything less than exceptional performance is the predominate mode of operation."
The advocates for a more effective government urged Obama and Congress to set standards and demand accountability through a performance-based framework at executive and legislative branch agencies. This should include linking agency budgets with annual performance plans, developing outcome measures that focus on critical priorities, and applying an objective system to evaluate program and individual successes, the groups said.
They also recommended issuing short reports that give the public a better understanding of the government and fuel a more meaningful debate about fiscal priorities, performance results and future challenges.
The coalition called for greater investment in human resources, including recruiting, orienting, developing and retaining a productive federal workforce, and engaging in workforce planning to address future skills needs.
Finally, the coalition suggested promoting the strategic use of technology to reengineer work processes to improve service delivery and accountability. This also would help meet the expectations of an increasingly tech-savvy population by tapping the Internet to give people instant access to the government.
The coalition, which was founded in 2000 and consists of 18 good government groups, does not advocate specific policy programs or positions, but rather, presents lawmakers and the administration with tools they can use to formulate an effective government management agenda.
-Brittany Ballenstedt, GovExec.com
READ MORE...
Thursday, November 06, 2008
GAO LISTS TOP “URGENT ISSUES” FOR NEXT PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS; UNVEILS NEW TRANSITION WEB SITE
Washington, D.C. – (Nov. 6, 2008) – Acting Comptroller General Gene Dodaro Thursday released a list of 13 urgent issues the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has identified as among those needing the attention of President-Elect Obama and the 111th Congress during the transition and the first year of the new administration and Congress. The list is the centerpiece of a new Web site GAO launched Thursday that is designed to help make the transition an informed and smooth one across the federal government.
See the website at: http://www.gao.gov/transition_2009
See the website at: http://www.gao.gov/transition_2009
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Obama outlines government reform plan
President-elect Barack Obama has already laid out a comprehensive set of government reform plans, including major changes to the Bush administration’s Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART), sweeping ethics reform and a new approach toward financial regulation.
Obama laid out his plans in an 11-page memo released last month. It calls for a new chief performance officer in the White House, who will oversee a strengthened PART. Under the new program, the president would have the authority to use poor PART assessments to replace agency heads, demand improvement plans, and reduce or eliminate program budgets.
The Bush administration has said repeatedly that PART assessments do not directly correlate to an agency’s budget.
Obama would restructure many federal agencies under the plan, thinning the ranks of what he calls “Washington middle managers” and boosting staffing levels in field offices. But Obama’s government reform memo doesn’t provide specifics on how many management jobs would be cut, and which agencies would be most affected.
Obama also hopes to increase transparency, through steps like creating a searchable database of lobbyist contacts and posting complete government contracts on the Internet. His team hopes those efforts will eliminate ethical lapses like those at the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service, where employees accepted gifts and meals from oil companies they regulated.
The plan also addresses another set of regulatory agencies making headlines: financial regulators.
“The large, complex institutions that dominate the financial landscape today no longer fit into discrete categories,” it says. “We need a streamlined system of oversight, one that reflects 21st century markets.”
Obama’s plan calls for consolidating some of the agencies, and requiring more detailed disclosures from financial institutions.
-Gregg Carlstrom, FederalTimes.com
READ MORE...
Obama laid out his plans in an 11-page memo released last month. It calls for a new chief performance officer in the White House, who will oversee a strengthened PART. Under the new program, the president would have the authority to use poor PART assessments to replace agency heads, demand improvement plans, and reduce or eliminate program budgets.
The Bush administration has said repeatedly that PART assessments do not directly correlate to an agency’s budget.
Obama would restructure many federal agencies under the plan, thinning the ranks of what he calls “Washington middle managers” and boosting staffing levels in field offices. But Obama’s government reform memo doesn’t provide specifics on how many management jobs would be cut, and which agencies would be most affected.
Obama also hopes to increase transparency, through steps like creating a searchable database of lobbyist contacts and posting complete government contracts on the Internet. His team hopes those efforts will eliminate ethical lapses like those at the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service, where employees accepted gifts and meals from oil companies they regulated.
The plan also addresses another set of regulatory agencies making headlines: financial regulators.
“The large, complex institutions that dominate the financial landscape today no longer fit into discrete categories,” it says. “We need a streamlined system of oversight, one that reflects 21st century markets.”
Obama’s plan calls for consolidating some of the agencies, and requiring more detailed disclosures from financial institutions.
-Gregg Carlstrom, FederalTimes.com
READ MORE...
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