CIO Guthrie's Big Task

Priscilla Guthrie started work this week as the intelligence community chief information officer. Dennis Blair, director of national intelligence, emphasized that one of her key tasks will be to "advance our information sharing goals."

Her predecessor, Dale Meyerrose, now vice president and general manager for cyberspace solutions at Harris Corp., said last year that encouraging information sharing among intelligence agencies has more to do with changes in behavior than technology.

Guthrie will need deft management to convince all the intell boys and girls to play nice together, and that may well be the toughest part of her job. She also will be responsible for all information technology procurement for the intelligence agencies. I find it more than coincidental that the Defense Intelligence Agency released this week its long-awaited $6.6 billion Solutions for the Information Technology Enterprise (SITE) procurement to provide the information technology services to the intelligence community worldwide.

President Obama nominated Guthrie as the intelligence CIO on March 20, and the Senate confirmed her on May 21.

She previously served as director of the information technology and systems division of the Institute for Defense Analyses. From 2001 to 2006, Guthrie was deputy assistant secretary of Defense and deputy chief information officer.