Government drops bid to fill chief technology officer role

WELLINGTON: The Government has abandoned its vexed search for a chief technology officer in favour of ‘‘a small group of people’’ to assist it in mapping policy to guide New Zealand’s digital technology environment.

The decision was announced to IT sector stakeholders in an email from Digital Services Minister Megan Woods.

She said that after several months of consideration ‘‘it would be difficult to find one person with the skillset to do this role’’.

Initially proposed by Xero founder Rod Drury and adopted as Labour Party policy, the CTO search became a political and reputational graveyard for those first associated with it.

A first attempt to make an appointment failed after no suitable candidates emerged.

Serial tech entrepreneur Derek Handley was then lured back to New Zealand with the role all but confirmed, only to fall foul of a political scandal that cost then minister Clare Curran her Cabinet position.

Dr Woods recommended to Cabinet on December 3 the appointment of a small group of advisers to fulfil the role envisaged by the CTO concept.

A full Cabinet paper is expected to be presented in March.

‘‘Further work will be done on this over summer, including the development of a work programme . . .’’ — BusinessDesk