More Management Nominations

By Robert Brodsky

President Obama on Thursday filled out some of his remaining administration management positions, nominating Daniel Werfel as controller of the Office of Federal Financial Management at the Office of Management and Budget and Frank Kendall III as deputy under secretary of defense for acquisition and technology.

Susan Tsui Grundmann was also nominated as chair of the Merit Systems Protection Board and Anne M. Wagner was slotted as the board's vice chair. The board is an independent, quasi-judicial agency that serves as the guardian of federal merit systems.

Werfel has served as deputy controller since March 2006 and as acting controller during the administration transition. As controller, Werfel will manage the day-to-day operations of the Chief Financial Officers' Council, run the government's financial management improvement plan and coordinate OMB policy on areas such as financial reporting, audits, internal controls, fraud and error reduction, and grants management

"His leadership in implementing the Recovery Act is just one example of his stellar work over many years - work that led the administration to recognize what those who have worked with him have known for years: Danny's an extraordinarily able public servant," OMB Director Peter Orszag said in a blog post Thursday evening.

Kendall, meanwhile, has 35 years of government, private sector and military experience in engineering, management, defense acquisition and national security affairs. Currently a managing partner at Renaissance Strategic Advisors, an Arlington, Va. aerospace and defense consulting firm, Kendall will serve as deputy to Ashton Carter in helping set DoD's acquisition strategy.

Grundmann recently served as general counsel to the National Federation of Federal Employees, a labor union which represents 100,000 federal workers nationwide. Wagner is currently the general counsel of the Personnel Appeals Board of the Government Accountability Office.