In the aftermath of the announcement that General Services Administration chief Martha Johnson had resigned Monday, GSA confirmed she would be replaced by Daniel M. Tangherlini as acting administrator, currently the assistant secretary of the Treasury for management and the department’s chief financial officer.
Tangherlini has been with the Obama administration since July 2009, when he was confirmed by the Senate. According to his official bio, in that role, he is the primary policy adviser on the development and execution of budget and performance plans for the department.
Prior to his service at Treasury, Tangherlini was city administrator and deputy mayor of the District of Columbia during the administration of Mayor Adrian Fenty. During Tangherlini’s tenure, Mike DeBonis of the Washington City Paper wrote, “his team of young bright-eyed analysts, armed with spreadsheets, budget books, and CapStats, pushed agencies to fulfill Fenty’s do-it-now style of governance.”
“Optimism without data is really just an emotion,” DeBonis quoted Tangherlini as saying.
Tangherlini also has previous federal experience. He has worked in the policy office of the Transportation Department and spent six years in the Office of Management and Budget during the Clinton administration, serving in several different roles. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in public policy from the University of Chicago and a master’s in business administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Here’s video of Tangherlini participating in a panel discussion on the subject of creating a performance culture at federal agencies during Government Executive‘s Excellence in Government conference last year (registration required).
Last year, the IBM Center for the Business of Government interviewed Tagherlini on his approach to leadership and management.
The news of Tangherlini’s appointment was first reported by The Washington Post.
— by Tom Shoop, Government Executive, Apr. 2, 2012 at http://www.govexec.com/management/2012/04/meet-new-gsa-administrator/41652/.
