Department of Homeland Security CIO Richard Spires to Address PMI® Global Congress 2010 - North America

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa., July 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Project Management Institute (PMI), the world's leading professional membership organization for project managers, announces that the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Chief Information Officer CIO Richard Spires will share his knowledge and expertise with attendees of the PMI® Global Congress 2010 — North America on Monday, 11 October 2010 from 8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. EST.  His presentation will address the management of large information technology (IT) programs in the Federal government, highlighting DHS initiatives to institutionalize best practices.  Mr. Spires currently oversees an IT budget investment of $6.4 billion.

Mr. Spires' extensive experience with senior-level operations and information technology issues for both private- and public-sector organizations makes him a thought leader and strategic expert on the crucial issues faced by today's project managers as they balance their evolving operational and strategic responsibilities.  His focus includes integrating the right tools, processes, and techniques as standard practices across the enterprise to further mature program management and success.  Efforts include standing up a Program Management Center of Excellence to provide templates and consistent evaluation criteria, and also address issues and challenges with knowledge management.  Spires' work to promote best practices extends to the Federal CIO Council, where he chairs the Best Practices Committee and co-chairs the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative.

The PMI Global Congress 2010 — North America will be held from 9-12 October in Washington D.C. at the Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center.    

About Richard A. Spires

Richard A. Spires was appointed in September 2009 to serve as the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Chief Information Officer (CIO). In this capacity, Mr. Spires is responsible for the department's $6.4 billion investment in Information Technology (IT). He leads and facilitates the development, implementation, and maintenance of the department's IT architecture. Mr. Spires is the chairman of the DHS Chief Information Officer Council and the Enterprise Architecture Board. He strongly supports the Secretary's goal of unifying and maturing DHS – one DHS, one enterprise, a shared vision, with integrated results-based operations.  Mr. Spires also serves on the Federal CIO Council, where he chairs the Best Practices Committee and co-chairs the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative.

Prior to being appointed to his current role, Mr. Spires held a number of positions at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from 2004 through 2008.  He also served as President, Chief Operating Officer, and Director of Mantas, Inc., a software provider that provides business intelligence solutions to the financial services industry, from 2000 through 2003.

About Project Management Institute (PMI)

The world's leading professional membership organization for project managers, PMI shares knowledge with more than one half million members and credential holders in over 180 countries. Since 1969, PMI has impacted more than one million practitioners, businesses, governments, students and training organizations. Today, PMI's products and services range from world-class standards for project, program and portfolio management to five professional credentials, including the gold standard Project Management Professional (PMP)®. PMI's exclusive Global Executive Council engages large multinationals and government organizations in endorsing the value of project management. The only project management association with an established academic research program, PMI has invested more than US$14 million in support of dozens of research projects since 1997. Learn more at PMI.org.

SOURCE Project Management Institute