GSA, FCC execs lose ‘interim’ titles

Christina Calvosa, Judith Zawatsky and Tricia Sieveke all received similar news last week.

All three federal executives no longer have “acting” or “interim” before their titles.

Calvosa is now the permanent chief information officer of the Federal Communications Commission after serving as the acting CIO since August 2017. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai announced the change on Feb. 1.

“The FCC’s aggressive agenda requires an expert and agile information technology team. That team needs a leader with deep expertise in all aspects of IT development, deployment and information security,” Pai said in a release. “This is especially important because Congress last year enhanced the responsibilities of the FCC’s CIO — responsibilities the FCC recently codified in our rules. Ms. Calvosa is an ideal choice for this role.”

While acting CIO, Calvosa oversaw the information technology for the 28 GHz auction and led implementation of the FCC’s updated and modernized National Broadband Map.

“In short, Ms. Calvosa has demonstrated the ability to deliver on this agency’s complex information technology requirements,” the statement said.

Over at the General Services Administration, Zawatsky and Sieveke received permanent roles with the Federal Acquisition Service.

Zawatsky joined the Senior Executive Service and will serve as the assistant commissioner for the Office of Systems Management. Sieveke will become the permanent FAS chief of staff.

FAS Commissioner Alan Thomas said in an email to staff that Zawatsky, who has served as both acting assistant commissioner since David Zvenyach left the role in May, has improved governance and oversight of FAS systems while serving in an acting capacity.

Previously, Zawatsky served as FAS chief of staff and has spent 18 years in industry. Sieveke took over from Zawatsky in May and as the permanent chief of staff will help drive FAS strategic priorities including the federal marketplace, said Thomas.

Sieveke brings more than 20 years of experience across GSA, serving in operational and staff roles at both the regional and headquarters levels and most recently as the senior adviser to the assistant commissioner for travel, transportation and logistics.

As permanent assistant commissioner, Zawatsky has an important opportunity to make real progress in fixing FAS systems. Thomas said last fall that its internal systems such as E-Buy, GSA Advantage, the FSS 19 and many others that make up their core business systems are expensive to maintain and not customer friendly.

At the same time, Zawatsky will oversee the modernization of governmentwide databases like the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) and about nine others that have been slow to improve over the last decade.

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