Mr. Desai was appointed as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in June of 2020. In this position, Mr. Desai is responsible for leading a multitude of information technology (IT) service capabilities to include cybersecurity, IT operations, systems design and engineering, IT policy, and data governance. Additionally, Mr. Desai has executive responsibility for developing and executing the Commission’s IT strategy.
Previously, Mr. Desai served as the Senior Advisor within the Office of the Executive Director for the FERC and was responsible for providing strategic direction and management of the Commission's enterprise risk management program. Prior to that, Mr. Desai served as the Deputy Chief Information Security Officer for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). He provided executive responsibility for the development, implementation, and maintenance of FDIC’s information security systems, processes, and policies required to protect the expansive breadth of the enterprise network. Mr. Desai has also served as the Chief Information Security Officer for the FERC. He provided strategic direction for and managed the Commission’s information security, systems assurance, records management, and privacy programs.
He has also held multiple positions within FERC, ranging from a regulatory policy analyst to leading the annual Inspector General FISMA audit. Mr. Desai joined FERC in 2007, prior to which he worked for KPMG in their Advisory Services practice supporting numerous commercial clients with IT general and automated controls evaluation. Mr. Desai graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in business information technology from Virginia Tech and is a Certified Information Systems Auditor. He is the recipient of the 2017 and 2023 Federal Computer Week Federal 100 and 2017 Rising Star awards.
