District's top techie advises Obama transition

WASHINGTON - The Fenty Administration's top techie is helping President-elect Barack Obama's transition team develop new ways to use technology.

Vivek Kundra, chief technology officer for the District, tells WTOP the same applications and innovations he's brought to the District government can be applied at the federal level.

"I'm advising on what we've done in the District of Columbia," Kundra says. "I think it's scaleable nationally, and globally, too."

Kundra isn't eager to talk about his work with the Obama transition team, preferring to direct the conversation back to his work for the District. But when pressed, Kundra acknowledges the scope of his consultations go beyond the transition.

"I'm advising in terms of some of the ideas that are in the District government that can be leveraged not just in the transition team, but across the country," says Kundras from his ninth floor office, which overlooks the federal enclave below Capitol Hill.

Kundra could get a new office with a different view. There are some in the tech world who would like to see Kundra take the job as the nation's first chief technology officer.

"This is all speculation," says Kundra. "I try not to answer speculative questions."

On paper, Kundra seems a good fit for the job. Before coming to work in D.C., he was the Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Technology for the Commonwealth of Virginia. His boss was Gov. Tim Kaine.

It doesn't hurt Kundra's chances that Kaine was the Obama campaign's national co-chair. Kundra led a trade mission with Kaine to India that netted the Commonwealth $99 million in investments.

Kundra is credited with coining the phrase "The Digital Public Square." A place he describes as, "one in which technological advances now allow people from around the world unfettered access to their government. Through these advances, constituents can hold their government accountable from the privacy of their own homes."

On his campaign Web site, candidate Obama laid out his vision of how technology will be a part of his administration:

"Barack Obama will use technology to reform government and improve the exchange of information between the federal government and citizens while ensuring the security of our networks. Obama and Biden believe in the American people and in their intelligence, expertise, and ability and willingness to give and to give back to make government work better."

Kundra knows just how to put that American expertise to work. One of his success stories is his APPS for Democracy contest. The District sponsored a contest with $50,000 in prize money. Contestants were asked for creative applications that put to use the District's more than 200 real time databases. The result was 47 applications that District employees and residents can use everyday.

The applications include everything from a link for your iPhone that tells you the crime reports for where you are standing, as well as where the nearest Metro is. Another gives historic tours of the city, including tons of information about the inaugural parade route. The District now owns the full rights to these 47 applications, all for $50,000.

"It would have cost me that much to put one of those applications out for bid. It saved us about $2.7 million," Kundra says.

Another innovation Kundra would bring to the feds is his "Wall Street" method of managing government technology projects the way a fund manager manages a stock portfolio. Using wall mounted smart screens, the managers scan hundreds of IT projects with the touch of a finger, and get at-a-glance reports, much like an individual would manage an online bank account or 401(k).

"I can see if the budget is being spent, and if the project is on-time," Kundra says.

For now Kundra is happy where he is.

"I'm having a blast," he says.

But when asked what if the president should ask? Kundra shrugs his shoulders and looks away.

(Copyright 2008 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)