Top CIOs to Watch in 2020

Rebecca McHale

Chief Information Officer, Booz Allen Hamilton

Coming into 2020, Booz Allen Hamilton knew it would be one of its busiest years to date, with a number of planned digital transformation efforts and a keen focus on initiatives to meet the requirements of the Defense Department’s Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program.

But it could not have anticipated that in the middle of those efforts, it would also need to rapidly enable a remote workforce, where telework became the default scenario for a vast majority of its employees, said Chief Information Officer Rebecca McHale.

“Teamwork has never been more critical, and I am most proud of our technology team’s ability to adapt to the unexpected while never losing focus on core strategic priorities,” she said.

Booz Allen Hamilton’s digital transformation agenda comprises initiatives to enhance the user experience and optimize productivity, McHale said. The move to telework as a result of COVID-19 served as a forcing function to accelerate that agenda and already planned activities.

“Today, we are adopting technology and tools at a faster pace to allow us to see each other and engage in a new way of connecting that wasn’t present prior to COVID,” she said.

The pandemic also served as an opportunity for Booz Allen Hamilton to reimagine the delivery of content for users to put the resources they require at their fingertips, tailored to their needs. Additionally, the organization continues to advance analytics to solve business challenges, such as optimizing resource management, which have become all the more critical with teams dispersed, McHale said.

Why Watch

As businesses begin to return to the office, with teams collaborating from within the office and virtually, it will be equally critical to proactively ensure the hybrid experience is positive and effective, McHale said.

“As employees have become hyperproductive during telework, it is increasingly critical that we continue to look at ways to reduce their administrative burden and create efficiencies through exceptional experience, automation and advanced analytics,” she added.

And finally, security is top of mind and ensuring technology strategies are embedded within security and compliance plans and vice versa remains highest priority.