What Happened?
Washington, DC-based District of Columbia has Promoted Tegene Baharu as Chief Technology Officer
About the Company
DC.Gov is the official web portal for District government information and services. Launched in 1999, the award-winning web portal has grown to include over 100 websites for District government agencies and topics ranging from sustainability to being an age friendly city to the quadrennial Presidential Inauguration. DC.Gov`s annual traffic is higher than many comparable population-sized municipalities and counties, with over 14 million visitors making 29 million visits in 2013 (an increase of nearly a million visitors and 2.5 million visits over 2012). Visitors include District residents and businesses, state and Federal agencies, and visitors from the US and abroad. The District`s unique governmental status requires websites that address state, county and municipal functionality. The portal provides over 250 online applications (30 alone for DMV) and more than 170 online forms making it easier for District residents and businesses to transact with their government. The portal reflects a strong commitment to transparency, open government, the integration of social media, accessibility and the thoughtful application of new web technology to serve the local residents of the District, such as the use of an open source CMS, responsive design and the growing use of mobile apps. Responsive design, which makes it possible to more easily access District information and services using any device, is increasingly important for a positive user experience: in 2013, more than 20% of visitors accessed DC.Gov using either a mobile device (15.24% of users) or tablet (5.44% of users). This is up from just 1% in 2009. And the trend continues to climb.
About the Person
Tegene Baharu is an accomplished technologist and visionary thought leader who has taken the technology infrastructure in Washington DC’s District government and has made it private sector savvy. From leading teams developing and managing critical enterprise applications to building a shared services model crossing barriers into private sector and Federal agencies, Tegene has managed full-lifecycle IT functions and tremendous teams. The recipient of many prestigious awards to include the Community Network of the year from NATOA and Top 10 Digital Cities to the White House’s coveted Champions of Change, Tegene’s vision has landed him high profile projects like DC-CAN. The Open accessibility wide broad network has made broadband affordable to anchor Institutions and residents alike. This project put the District on the map as the first 100 GB city in the US. In Tegene’s portfolio of oversight are Network Operations, Citywide IT Security Operations, Telecom Governance, and DC-Net (SOC, Email, Data Center Facilities). Tegene’s operations serve 96 District agencies and several Federal Entities leveraging his technology shared services model. Tegene serves as an Information and Communication Technology SME to the District, several Think Tanks, and International Governments globally. A dynamic speaker and lecturer in his own right, Tegene has led several critical projects delivering regulatory expertise and ICT architecture work in the areas of ICT and Telecommunications. Tegene serves as a pioneer and critical contributor to many global and national initiatives and organizations to include GENI (NSF), First Net, OMB, US Ignite and others. An engineer by trade, Tegene’s journey as a thought-leader was paved with his ability to consume, architect, and deliver technical projects. His engineering background gives him tremendous credibility with his teams and stakeholders. Tegene serves as the executive sponsor and liaison for several executive relationships with vendors, lawmakers, and government agencies alike. Tegene is passionate about diversity and is a very hands-on technology leader.
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