VA CIO Roger Baker recognized for excellence in leadership

The Veterans Affairs Department’s most senior technologist has received top honors for his leadership in information resources management. Roger Baker, VA CIO, received the award June 12 at the AFFIRM Leadership Awards Luncheon at the Capital Hilton in Washington, D.C. He received the Executive Leadership in Information Resources Management – Civilian award.

Under his direction, VA has been setting an example of how agencies can update and modernize their network infrastructure, with Baker spearheading efforts in cloud adoption and IT systems consolidation, his nomination said.

In accepting his award, Baker offered a few words on what leadership means and highlighted the focus on outcomes. “I think a leader has to be the rock that results are built on in an organization, and really has to be focused on delivering those results,” he said. “In the end, results are all that matter. We spend a lot of time on process in the government [but] process doesn’t serve veterans. Process doesn’t serve the taxpayers. Process doesn’t serve all of our other mission focuses.”...