The Veterans Affairs Department’s Office of Information and Technology has gotten a lot of new blood recently — including a new CIO and CISO — and will be getting another new addition in the new year.

On Jan. 10, Ron Thompson will be joining VA OI&T as the new principal deputy assistant secretary, leading the department’s day-to-day IT operations.

“Ron’s breadth of hands-on experience in organizational design and transformation will bring new perspectives in partnership and creative problem solving,” VA CIO LaVerne Council said in an email to staff on Dec. 17, adding, “His years of service in the United States Army will help him ensure that the veteran remains the focal point of everything we do.”

About 

Aaron Boyd is an awarding-winning journalist currently serving as editor of Federal Times — a Washington, D.C. institution covering federal workforce and contracting for more than 50 years — and Fifth Domain — a news and information hub focused on cybersecurity and cyberwar from a civilian, military and international perspective.