FRAMINGHAM, Mass., June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The June 15 cover story of CIO magazine features a hard-hitting expose of the technology-averse culture at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which resulted in the public failures of some well-known information technology (IT) projects, such as the virtual case file (VCF), during the past several years. The article, written by the magazine's Washington D.C. Bureau Chief, Allan Holmes, reports on such IT management failures as the FBI's cultural bias against technology, an overly secretive operating environment, and a revolving door in the chief information officer (CIO) suite.

"The FBI's new CIO must change the agency's cultural bias against information-sharing and technology before it can become a global intelligence operation truly capable of preventing crime and terrorism," Holmes says in the article.

The story features candid interviews with current and former FBI officials, including Sherry Higgins, former manager of the bureau's Trilogy project (its $600 million IT modernization project), which included the Virtual Case File. Higgins provides an insider's view into the FBI's troubled technology operations and how an IT culture more obsessed with remaining secretive than opening up communications leads to large-scale failures. "The FBI will throw good money after bad to cover up a bad decision," says Higgins.

Also interviewed is Zalmai Azmi, the current CIO of the FBI. Azmi goes on the record with CIO magazine regarding the challenges the Bureau faces in trying to create a world-class IT operation. Azmi likens his work at the FBI to "running a marathon when you're out of shape. Every mile is an uphill battle and an accomplishment at the same time. The race is painful and the 26th mile-marker far away."

The story offers CIO readers a view inside an organization struggling with defining the proper role of IT. It demonstrates how such a failure can negatively affect an organization's ability to operate effectively, and possibly reinforce any negative stereotypes regarding technology.

The complete story is currently available on the CIO magazine web site at http://www.cio.com/archive/061505/gmen.html

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CONTACT: Rick Sheehy CIO Magazine 508-988-7896 (office) 508-596-5802 (mobile) rsheehy@cxo.com

CONTACT: Rick Sheehy of CIO Magazine, +1-508-988-7896, or
+1-508-596-5802, rsheehy@cxo.com

Web site: http://www.cio.com/archive/061505/gmen.html
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