Melvin Brown II takes over as OPM’s chief information officer

The Office of Personnel Management has a new top IT official: Melvin Brown II is now the agency’s chief information officer following Guy Cavallo’s retirement from federal service.

Before his promotion, Brown was the deputy CIO at the agency and served in that role since January 2021.

In a written statement, an OPM spokesperson said Brown “has been an integral leader in delivering many of OPM’s accomplishments in modernizing IT.” That includes the agency achieving an “A” score on its Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act, or FITARA, scorecard, which tracks agency progress in multiple IT areas.

“He has also led numerous modernization initiatives, experience OPM and its customers will benefit from in his new role as CIO of OPM. His leadership will continue to be critical in providing efficient, high-quality service,” the spokesperson said.

Prior to joining OPM, Brown directed enterprise business management within the Small Business Administration’s Office of the CIO and was a senior adviser to the Department of Homeland Security’s Presidential Transition Office.

In addition to his government service, Brown is currently a board member of the FinOps Foundation, an organization focused on promoting a collaborative approach to cost management of cloud services that involves both financial and engineering teams.

Cavallo, who served as OPM’s top IT officer since September 2020, officially left his role on Monday.