For EPA’s Travers, good government is the family business
Working for the government is a family tradition for Linda Travers. Her grandfather, father, sister, aunts and uncles, and one of her children are all present or former government employees.
Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Travers has been with the Environmental Protection Agency since its inception in 1970.
Last year she was appointed deputy CIO, the highest-ranking career position in the agency.
Despite offers to go elsewhere, Travers has chosen to stay at EPA to continue to do work associated with the environment. Her career has taken her through various EPA offices where she has been instrumental in shaping key agency IT and information management programs, “all of which have benefited from her leadership,” said EPA CIO Kim Nelson.
Shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Travers led the effort to determine the agency’s core infrastructure and IT and management needs to ensure continuity of operations. She was instrumental in the design and development of EPA’s state-of-the-art Emergency Operations Center, which went from concept to completion in less than six months, came in under budget and has been widely acknowledged throughout government, Nelson said.
Outreach is critical
Travers’ outreach to other federal agencies during the development process was critical in ensuring that EPA had the most up-to-date information to support its emergency response program, Nelson said.
That approach—breaking down internal barriers and effectively working with other agencies—also has marked her work on e-government and the President’s Management Agenda, Nelson said.
Travers led the restructuring of EPA’s IT investment management board from an information-sharing group to a strategic planning and oversight body. In her lead role at the Office of Environmental Information, Travers has institutionalized EPA’s core enterprise architecture through the Portal Development Board.
“Linda Travers’ outstanding leadership, strategic thinking, creativity, open communication style and ability to handle a wide breadth of responsibility have led to path-breaking improvements and innovation in the Office of Environmental Information and the agency,” Nelson said.
For Travers, “it’s really important to be results-oriented, and people have to see you as someone who accomplishes things.” She also finds it important to listen to all points of view. “And you never discard any good idea,” she said.
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