Pennsylvania Governor Rendell Announces Resignation of Secretary of Administration Naomi Wyatt, Appoints Christian Soura as Secretary

HARRISBURG, Pa., July 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Edward G. Rendell today announced that Secretary of Administration Naomi Wyatt will resign effective July 30 to become vice president for business development at Electronic Ink, a Philadelphia-based international business system design firm.

Wyatt was appointed as secretary of administration in August 2007.  She previously served as the Office of Administration's deputy secretary for human resources and management, and also as the executive director of the Governor's Office of Management and Productivity.

"Secretary Wyatt has been an incredibly effective leader. Her intelligence and tenacity have made Pennsylvania's government work smarter," Governor Rendell said.  "Under Naomi's leadership, the Office of Administration has saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. The economy has been tough on state revenues. Employees and citizens would have felt even more negative impacts if not for Naomi's hard work."

The Governor appointed Christian Soura to succeed Wyatt as secretary. Soura is director of OA's Office of Strategic Services, a position he had held since 2008.  Soura previously served as deputy director of the Office of Management and Productivity and as a budget analyst for the Senate Appropriations Committee. He holds master's degrees in political science from the University of Illinois and public administration from Penn State, and a graduate certificate in public budgeting and financial management.

At the Governor's Office of Administration, Wyatt leads a 2,200 employee agency that provides human resources, information technology, continuity of government, travel operations, records management and strategic consulting services to more than 45 agencies, boards and commissions under the Governor's jurisdiction.  

The office also oversees the building and operation of the state's 800 MHz public safety radio system, which covers 95 percent of the state. Last year, the system supported nearly 40 million "push-to-talk" transactions and millions more data-related transactions, including instant access to state and federal law enforcement databases for State Police troopers working from their vehicles.

Under Secretary Wyatt's leadership, the radio network's extensive infrastructure has been leveraged to secure a $29 million federal grant to help bring high-speed broadband internet services to 30 counties north of Interstate 80.

Last year, the Office of Administration launched a statewide HR service center to centralize the processing of common human resource issues, like managing benefits, updating personal information and changing payroll options. Centralizing this work is estimated to save $3.5 million annually.

Under Secretary Wyatt's leadership, the Office of Administration also renegotiated key contracts for data center and telecommunications services, resulting in a projected $300 million in savings over the next seven years.  

During Wyatt's tenure, the Office of Administration's Office for Information Technology has been recognized for its innovation and leadership by the Center for Digital Government, the National Association of State Chief Information Officers, and the Computerworld Honors Program, among others.  

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor