Chief Information Officers Council
About CIOC
Our Purpose
The Chief Information Officers (CIO) Council is the principal interagency forum for improving agency practices related to the design, acquisition, development, modernization, use, sharing, and performance of Federal information resources.
The U.S. CIO and the CIO Council establish standards against which the success of all agency programs can be measured, including:
- Monitoring the year-to-year performance improvement of Federal Government programs
- Attracting and retaining a high-performance IT workforce
- Optimizing Federal Government information resources and investments
- Aligning IT solutions with Federal enterprise business processes
- Adopting and sharing best IT management practices
- Managing risk and ensuring privacy and security
Our Statutory Requirements
- Developing recommendations for the Director of OMB on government information resources management policies and requirements;
- Sharing experiences, ideas, best practices, and innovative approaches related to information resources management;
- Assisting the Federal CIO in the identification, development, and coordination of multi-agency projects and other innovative initiatives to improve Government performance through the use of information technology;
- Promoting the development and use of common performances for agency information resources management; and
- Working with the Office of Personnel Management to assess and address the hiring, training, classification, and professional development of the Federal IT workforce.
Our Vision
The CIO Council aspires to promote a bright and prosperous future for the United States through the strategic use of Federal Information Technology. It seeks to drive efficiency and effectiveness across Government, spurring innovation, protecting and defending our resources and more effectively bringing Government services to Americans.
You can review our statutory requirements (opens in a new tab) in detail or the CIO Council Charter (opens in a new tab) to learn more about us.
CIO Council Priorities
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People & Culture
The U.S. Tech Force is about building durable capability and professional identity across government.
Priority Overview
The U.S. Tech Force (opens in a new tab) is about building durable capability and professional identity across government, not just staffing projects. Federal technology leadership depends on attracting, developing, and retaining a world-class workforce equipped to meet evolving mission demands. At the same time, we're strengthening the CIO community and reinforcing trust-based, candid collaboration. Good policy starts with ground truth. Investing in people means creating clear career pathways, competitive compensation structures, and professional development programs that rival the private sector. It also means fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and public service that motivates technologists to choose government careers.
Why This Matters
Without the right people in the right roles, no technology strategy succeeds. The Federal CIO Council is committed to building an environment where skilled professionals can thrive, grow, and deliver meaningful impact at national scale.
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Simplify, Don't Repackage
Modernization starts with a blank whiteboard and a hard question: what problem are we actually solving?
Priority Overview
Modernization starts with a blank whiteboard and a hard question: what problem are we actually solving? Too often, legacy system replacements replicate existing complexity rather than eliminating it. True modernization means rethinking processes from the ground up.
Simplification is a discipline. It requires the courage to retire outdated requirements, consolidate redundant workflows, and design systems that do less - but do it well. Every layer of unnecessary complexity is a tax on users, operators, and taxpayers.
Why This Matters
Repackaging old processes in new technology wastes modernization investments. The Federal CIO Council champions approaches that reduce complexity, streamline operations, and deliver genuine improvements to how government serves the public.
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Build Bespoke Rarely
Most core capabilities are commodities now. Custom systems mean long-term ownership of every bug, every patch, and every compliance requirement.
Priority Overview
Most core capabilities are commodities now. Custom systems mean long-term ownership of every bug, every patch, and every compliance requirement. Building bespoke should be the exception, reserved for truly unique mission needs that no commercial or shared solution can address.
Agencies should default to buying proven commercial solutions or leveraging government-wide shared services. When building is necessary, it should follow modern engineering practices with clear ownership, maintainability plans, and exit strategies.
Why This Matters
Custom-built systems are expensive to maintain and difficult to secure at scale. The Federal CIO Council promotes a buy-first, build-rarely approach that frees agency resources to focus on mission-unique challenges rather than reinventing commodity capabilities.
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Architecture-First Procurement
Clear reference architectures, defined in functional terms, get us to better outcomes faster.
Priority Overview
Clear reference architectures, defined in functional terms, get us to better outcomes faster. Procurement should start with architecture - a shared understanding of what the target state looks like - before any contract is written.
Architecture-first procurement means establishing technical standards, integration patterns, and performance requirements upfront. This creates a level playing field for vendors, reduces lock-in risk, and ensures acquired solutions fit into the broader enterprise landscape.
Why This Matters
Without architectural clarity, procurement becomes a guessing game that produces fragmented, incompatible systems. The Federal CIO Council advocates for architecture-led acquisition strategies that deliver coherent, interoperable solutions across the federal enterprise.
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Design to Reduce Interaction
The best digital service is often the one where nothing happens because nothing needed to.
Priority Overview
The best digital service is often the one where nothing happens because nothing needed to. Designing to reduce interaction means eliminating unnecessary steps, automating routine processes, and proactively delivering services before people have to ask.
This principle draws from the insight that every interaction a citizen has with government represents a cost - in time, effort, and complexity. Reducing burden is not just a design goal; it is a policy imperative that improves equity, access, and trust.
Why This Matters
Americans deserve government services that are simple, fast, and invisible when they can be. The Federal CIO Council supports design practices that minimize friction, automate eligibility determinations, and deliver proactive service to those who need it most.
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Scale Through Shared Services
Breaking down silos across identity, data exchange, cybersecurity, and cloud services creates compounding returns.
Priority Overview
Breaking down silos across identity, data exchange, cybersecurity, and cloud services is how we move faster and spend less. Shared services allow agencies to leverage common platforms, reduce duplicative spending, and deliver consistent experiences across government.
This includes modernizing FedRAMP and rethinking Authority to Operate (ATO) so it fits modern cloud and AI environments. Scaling through shared services means investing in reusable infrastructure - identity management, data integration layers, security operations centers, and cloud platforms - that multiple agencies can adopt without rebuilding from scratch.
Why This Matters
Every agency solving the same problem independently wastes resources and creates inconsistency. The Federal CIO Council drives shared service adoption to multiply the impact of every technology dollar and create a more unified federal digital infrastructure.
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Practical AI Adoption
Every federal employee should have access to baseline AI-enabled productivity tools.
Priority Overview
Every federal employee should have access to baseline AI-enabled productivity tools. Practical AI adoption means moving beyond pilot projects and proof-of-concepts to embed artificial intelligence into everyday government workflows where it delivers measurable value.
This priority focuses on equipping the federal workforce with AI tools for document analysis, data synthesis, customer service, and operational efficiency - while maintaining appropriate guardrails for accuracy, security, and ethical use.
Why This Matters
AI is not a future capability - it is a present-day productivity multiplier. The Federal CIO Council is committed to responsible, practical AI deployment that empowers federal employees and improves the quality and speed of government services.
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Measure What Matters
Talent retention and impact. Fewer manual data calls. Fewer duplicative information requests.
Priority Overview
Talent retention and impact. Fewer manual data calls. Fewer duplicative information requests. Measurement should focus on outcomes that matter - not activity metrics that create reporting burden without driving improvement.
Effective measurement means defining clear success criteria upfront, automating data collection wherever possible, and using metrics to inform decisions rather than justify budgets. The goal is a lighter, faster feedback loop between investment and impact.
Why This Matters
What gets measured gets managed - but only if we measure the right things. The Federal CIO Council promotes outcome-oriented metrics that reduce reporting overhead, improve accountability, and help agencies demonstrate the real impact of their technology investments.