After more than two years in a dual role as CIO and principal deputy assistant secretary for IT at the Veterans Affairs Department, Stephen Warren will step down as of Aug. 28, according to an internal VA e-mail announcing the news.
Warren's departure comes one month after industry IT veteran LaVerne Council was sworn in as VA CIO and assistant secretary for information and technology. With Council's arrival at the VA, Warren returned to his role as principal deputy assistant secretary for IT.
The VA CIO role oversees an IT portfolio of more than $4 billion, and has been a hot seat in recent years amid IT security issues and nationwide scandals with the agency's patient scheduling and claims processing systems.
In his time at the VA, which goes back seven years, Warren has worked dutifully to fix the agency's IT troubles, according to some who worked with him.
"Steph worked for me for four years, and was an outstanding partner in the things we accomplished during that time," said former VA CIO Roger Baker. "For those that forget, those things included completing the consolidation of VA IT, stopping 45 failing programs, delivering the GI Bill system on time, and deploying the [Veterans benefits Management System] nationally six months ahead of schedule. None of that could have been done without Steph Warren."
In the internal email to VA personnel, obtained by Federal Times, Council said that Warren's work has been instrumental in launching the efforts she is leading to boost the VA's cybersecurity.
"Stephen's leadership helped lay the foundation for the organization that we will continue to improve upon and bring to greatness," Council wrote.
