OPM names transition leadership for new background check bureau

James Onusko from the Department of Veterans Affairs will serve as transition team leader, and his deputy will be Christy Wilder, formerly of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. At VA, Onusko served as executive director of personnel security and identity management, and spent nearly a decade at the State Department as director of the Office of Personnel Security and Suitability. Wilder worked in ODNI’s Office of Legislative Affairs, where she supported the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. “The transition team will be focused on standing up NBIB in a way that strengthens how the Federal Government conducts background investigations and protects vital information,” OPM spokesman Sam Schumach said in a statement. The bureau will be located within OPM, and Defense Department will deploy its back-end IT. The establishment of a National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB) was announced earlier this year, as part of a series of changes to modernize and strengthen the way the government conducts background investigations for Federal employees and contractors and protect sensitive data. This step builds on efforts the Obama Administration has taken over the last year to increase the Federal government’s cybersecurity capabilities and protect systems and data government-wide.]]>