ACMA kicks CIO role up a notch

The Australian Communications and Media Authority's (ACMA) chief information officer (CIO) Cliff Van Lohuizen could be in for a pay rise as the authority boosts his position to Senior Executive Service (SES) Level 1.

ACMA has embarked upon an ambitious program of transformation through, amongst other things, a more strategic approach to its use of ICT

ACMA spokesperson

However, if Van Lohuizen wants the pay rise, he will have to apply for the new role, which ACMA advertised last Saturday. Van Lohuizen joined ACMA in 2007 from his previous posting as CrimTrac's CIO.

Van Lohuizen's role at ACMA has until now been positioned at Executive Level 2; however, ACMA decided to upgrade the position to reflect the importance of its IT transformation program, an ACMA spokesperson told ZDNet.com.au. The SES Level 1 position would effectively mean that the candidate would gain the status of branch rather than section leader, the spokesperson explained.

Should Van Lohuizen win the appointment, he could expect a major salary increase, with EL roles typically attracting salaries of less than $100,000 per year. The SES Level 1 rank offers $218,000 per annum, according to ACMA's advertisement.

"ACMA has embarked upon an ambitious program of transformation through, amongst other things, a more strategic approach to its use of ICT," the advertisement states. "The CIO will be expected to make a significant contribution to this broad transformational agenda by driving a more strategic use of ICT to deliver more effective and efficient ACMA wide service delivery."

Van Lohuizen's deputies, Rob Casey, who oversees ACMA's business as usual IT management, and Hylkia De Greve, who heads up ACMA's transformation, will retain their roles regardless of who is appointed to the CIO position.

The transformation program will aim to free the authority's processes from its organisational structure, according to ACMA's 2009 corporate plan, by implementing "a systems-based approach of inputs to and outputs from industry, thereby seeking to better harmonise critical common processes such as enforcement, allocation and public education".

ACMA is also overhauling its IT outsourcing arrangements. It was one of eight agencies under the so-called Group 8 collective outsourcing agreement won by former Commander business, Volante, in 2000, which is due to expire in June 2009.

ACMA is yet to finalise a replacement to Darwin-based incumbent supplier CSG, which acquired Commander's contracts last year following the company's demise.

The CIO will report to Dianne Carlos, ACMA's general manager of corporate services.