Halvorsen Now Defense Department’s Permanent CIO

Defense Department CIO Terry Halvorsen

Defense Department CIO Terry Halvorsen US Naval Institute

Terry Halvorsen gets the bump from acting CIO and will exercise authority over the Pentagon’s $36 billion IT budget.

Terry Halvorsen, who became the Defense Department’s acting chief information officer almost a year ago, has assumed duties as its permanent CIO as of March 8, according to a DOD spokeswoman.

Halvorsen, formerly the U.S. Navy’s CIO, stepped into the full department’s CIO role in an acting capacity following the departure of then-CIO Teri Takai.

Halvorsen will exercise authority over the Pentagon’s $36 billion IT budget.

Even in an acting capacity, Halvorsen has developed a reputation as technologically progressive in comparison to his predecessors, pushing DOD personnel toward the adoption of numerous emerging technologies. He’s been the driving force behind the DOD’s accelerated adoption of cloud computing, the optimization of its data centers and the development of its Joint Information Environment.