CIO Council plans mentor program

The CIO Council intends to launch a governmentwide mentoring program in September aimed at advancing interagency e-government initiatives.

During the first year of the program, the leaders of the CIO Council's five committees will serve as mentors to proteges from agencies across government.

The proteges will work full- or part-time on assignments that have been defined by the mentors and tied to the council's strategic plan, said Tom Horan, team leader for the mentoring program and an official at the General Services Administration. Midlevel information technology professionals are the most likely candidates for the program, but em.ployees from other areas are welcome to apply, Horan said.

The council is looking for "anybody that would best qualify to get the job done and benefit from mentoring from the CIO or deputy CIO they are assigned to," he said.

Once the yearlong pilot and a subsequent evaluation are complete, the CIO Council plans to expand the program. It will likely then include mentors and assignments from other groups, such as the Procurement Executives Council and the Chief Financial Officers Council.

The program aims to produce well-rounded employees who become familiar with issues facing other agencies. "This is a good opportunity to work on cross-cutting horizontal government activities that need more attention," Horan said.

The council will release information on available assignments when it unveils the program at the end of July. Committee leaders plan to select participants and iron out work arrangements with the proteges in August. Each mentor would have one or two proteges who would work on one or more projects.