U.S. GPO Names Chief Technology Officer

The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) named Richard "Ric" Davis as chief technology officer (CTO). Davis has held various management positions in the library services and information technology departments. Davis most recently served as acting superintendent of documents and managing director of library services and content management. In these positions, Davis oversaw the dissemination of government information to the Federal Depository Library Program and managed GPO's Federal Digital System (FDsys), which is a one-stop site for authentic, published government information.

Davis has always maintained a focus on business process driven technology improvements, overseeing key strategic initiatives including the implementation of GPO's Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool to automate business processes to improve customer service. Prior to joining GPO, Davis worked for RJR Nabisco. Davis earned his bachelors degree from James Madison University and his master's degree from the College of William and Mary. He has also completed additional graduate work at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

As CTO, Davis is responsible for the Office of Programs, Strategy and Technology, which provides management support, process discipline, business process reengineering, and transparency to key agency strategic programs. In this role, Davis will be instrumental in aligning the agency's information technology vision with the overall business strategy. Davis also oversees the conceptualization and development of GPO's Federal Digital System (FDsys).

"Ric's expertise and institutional knowledge of GPO and its operating systems makes him a natural fit as a leader of our technology team," said chief of staff Davita Vance-Cooks. "Ric was part of the team in developing online access to government information and has experience in working with the library community on FDsys. I look forward to his advice as GPO becomes a digital information platform of the federal government."

With 2,200 employees, GPO is the federal government's primary resource for producing, procuring, cataloging, indexing, authenticating, disseminating and preserving the official information products of the U.S. government in digital and tangible forms. GPO is responsible for the production and distribution of information products and services for all three branches of the federal government, including U.S. passports for the Department of State as well as the official publications of Congress, the White House, and other federal agencies. In addition to publication sales, GPO provides for permanent public access to federal government information at no charge through GPO's Federal Digital System and through partnerships with approximately 1,220 libraries nationwide participating in the Federal Depository Library Program.