After a year of procrastination, the Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) government has finally unveiled Howard C Dickson as the Government Chief Information Officer (GCIO). Dickson"s appointment has brought an end to a long and much debated campaign to headhunt the ideal candidate for the government IT hotseat.

Dickson will take up the appointment on February 1, 2005, with current leader of the Office of the GCIO, Allan Wong, stepping down from his existing role.

Wong previously served as director of the then Information Technology Services Department before its merger with the IT-related divisions of the Communications and Technology Branch of the Commerce, Industry and Technology Bureau.

UK-born Dickson arrives from Canada where his recent roles included the first CIO at the Department of National Defense of the Government of Canada, and from 1999-2004 he served as Assistant Deputy Minister, Information Management.

Prior to his arrival in Hong Kong, Dickson was an independent consultant advising clients from both the Federal Government of Canada and the Provincial Government of Ontario.

Leading up to the appointment of Dickson, a number of local IT professionals were cited as front-running possibilities for the GCIO role, with many industry professionals citing the need for some local expertise and knowledge. This announcement has ended the long running debate over who and what type of candidate the incoming GCIO should be.

The Secretary for the Civil Service, Joseph W P Wong said Dickson possessed sound professional skills, solid working experience in both the public and private sectors, and proven administrative abilities. "I am confident that Dickson will provide the recently established Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) with the necessary leadership in promoting the development and application of information technology (IT) within and outside the Government."

Welcoming Dickson"s appointment, John Tsang, the secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, said that the breadth and depth of Dickson"s experience and expertise, both in the public and private sectors, made him an ideal candidate for the GCIO job. "