Washington: IIT Mumbai alumni and Microsoft
veteran Bharat Shyam has been appointed the new chief
information officer (CIO) of Washington state.
Shyam`s appointment was announced by Washington Governor
Chris Gregoire on Monday.
"I am incredibly impressed with Bharat," Gregoire
said in a statement.
"With nearly 20 years of experience at Microsoft, he
brings a deep understanding of software and technology. And
his level of enthusiasm for the position is unmatched. I
welcome him to this role, and know the citizens of Washington
State will benefit from his service," Gregoire
said.
Shyam said he was honoured to serve the people of
Washington State as part of Governor Gregoire`s team.
"I adopted Washington as my home two decades ago and
my family has benefited enormously from working and living in
this state. That`s why I`m thrilled to give back by ensuring
we spend money wisely on information technology," he added.
"Home to some of the most vibrant IT companies,
combined with rapid change in IT and a dedicated state
workforce - Washington State has the potential to be the best
government in the world when it comes to information
technology. I intend to use our state assets - and make our
state nimble while delivering the best services to citizens at
the lowest costs," Shyam said.
While at Microsoft, Shyam successfully reduced costs
of software publishing and servicing, while delivering higher
quality and a more agile system, an official release said.
Shyam earned a degree in computer science and engineering
from the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay, before
attending Stanford University, where he graduated with
a master`s of science in computer science in 1993.
He began his career at Microsoft in 1993 as a software
design engineer, developing early prototypes of one of the
nation`s first smart phones.
He later became a lead software engineer for Internet
Explorer and Windows 98 and 2000, and was a creator of the
billing system for several services in Microsoft - including
XBOX Live.
He most recently served as General Manager for
Windows Azure.
On October 1, 2011, the Office of the Chief Information
Officer became an official part of the restructured Office of
Financial Management and Washington state government.
The OCIO`s unique role in state government is to
create clarity and alignment for IT investments by Shyam`s
appointment became effective November 15.
Shyam will earn an annual salary of USD 147,154.
PTI
