Fed CIO targets a key area to improve Fed IT, World Class Program Managers

I was reading ZDNET's post on the Fed targeting to close 800 data centers by 2015.

Fed CIO Kundra: We need to shut 800 data centers down by 2015

By Larry Dignan | April 12, 2011, 1:49pm PDT

Summary

Vivek Kundra, the chief information officer of the Federal government, said Tuesday that the company is actively shutting down 800 data centers by 2015.

Then I read the PDF testimony by Vivek Kundra to understand more, and found the section on strengthening program managers.

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I spent much of my career at Apple and Microsoft as a program manager working on operating system releases.  Three of some of the best I worked with are:

Sheila Brady - Project Leader for System 7

Dennis Adler - Group Program Manager for Windows 95


While a director for MSR, Mr. Adler led a team from Research to the Windows Server Division and oversaw the initial development of a new server deployment and management technology that shipped with Windows Server 2003; formed the University Relations Group in
MSR and oversaw its rapid growth and initial expansion into Europe and Asia; was instrumental in MSR’s initial external public relations endeavors; and was a liaison between MSR and Microsoft’s product teams, as well as a Group Program Manager in the Personal
Systems Division.  Mr. Adler led the team responsible for designing and overseeing the development of the core components for Windows 95

John Medica - Project Leader for Macintosh II

John K. Medica retired as Senior Vice President and Co-Leader, Product Group from Dell Inc. in April 2007. In 1993, Mr. Medica joined Dell as Vice President, Portable Systems. During 1996, he served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Dell?s Japan division. He returned to the U.S. in August 1997 as Vice President, Procurement, and later served as Vice President, Web Products Group, and Vice President and General Manager, Transactional Product Group. Prior to joining Dell, he served as Project Leader for the Macintosh II, Director of the Macintosh CPU Projects Group and Senior Director of PowerBook Engineering with Apple Computer. Mr. Medica received his bachelor?s degree in Electrical Engineering from Manhattan College, and his master?s degree in Business Administration from Wake Forest University. Mr. Medica is currently a director of Compal Electronics, Inc., a publicly traded company.

These are some of top program managers I learned a lot from and the unique talent to manage complex projects with 100s if not 1000s of people on projects that were market successes.  And, I have been lucky to be able to connect with these great program managers even the products shipped.