Garcia, who began work Monday, Oct. 2, fills a position that David DeVries vacated Sept. 2 after DeVries became CIO and director of Michigan’s Department of Technology, Management and Budget. Garcia was brought in quickly as a political appointee, a month to the day after his predecessor left the role. Garcia's tenure at the CIO position in Maryland dated back to 2015. Prior to that, he was known for founding NMR Consulting in 1996, serving in active duty for the U.S. Army and later working as chief of telecommunications with the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, now known as the U.S. Army Public Health Command.
As CIO, Garcia will oversee the information and services that support OPM’s programs and initiatives. The agency recruits for the federal government's workforce, posting job announcements on USAJOBS.gov, while also setting policy for overall hiring procedures. It is also tasked with conducting background investigations for security clearances throughout government and with managing pension benefits for retired federal employees.
Garcia will be the fourth CIO for OPM in two years following a hacking incident in 2015 that led to the exposure of more than 22 million current and former government employees' data.
Garcia will take over the agency’s executive tech leadership role as it evaluates vendors for a new initiative aimed at modernizing the electronic personnel management files. In September, OPM issued a request for information as the agency “seeks to establish a complete, accurate and secure Employee Digital Record that will contain all relevant employee data for the entire human capital lifecycle,” according to the RFI.