Andy Beale, the man put in charge of ensuring that the IT used by civil servants is up to the job, is to move up to become the government's deputy chief technology officer.
Beale launched the Common Technology Services programme last year, with the central Government Digital Service team saying it would aim to iron out common frustrations with tech faced by officials and remove a "really expensive" barrier to innovation.
According to the government's chief technology officer Liam Maxwell, Beale's appointment will bring together GDS's architecture; policy and standards; service assurance and controls; and strategic change teams "for the first time".
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Maxwell said: "The role will ensure government technology is even better placed to support the Technology Leader community across government. Andy will also join forces with colleagues in our commercial and cyber functions to ensure Technology Leaders gain the support they need across these disciplines and can focus on delivery."
As previously announced, the CTS job will now be taken up by Iain Patterson, who has just completed a stint at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), where he worked on secondment from GDS and oversaw the agency's efforts to bring its IT support back in-house after decades of outsourcing.
Commenting on his new appointment, Beale said the deputy CTO role would be a "fantastic opportunity to better support CTOs by joining up IT reform efforts and the great teams we have across the Cabinet Office".
"I’m incredibly proud of the transformation of civil service technology, starting with the Cabinet Office Technology Project and continuing with the creation of Common Technology Services (CTS). And I’m delighted that Iain Patterson now takes over the reins to make CTS the industrial strength function that government needs."
GDS – which received a £450m boost to its budget at last year's government-wide Spending Review – is expected to outline its strategy for the next four years next week at the Sprint 16 conference in London.
According to the day's agenda, Cabinet Office minister Matt Hancock will use gathering of tech leaders to unveil "the UK government’s transformation programme", while there will also be a look at GDS's much-heralded plans for "government-as-a-platform", which aims to build a common infrastructure for departments and further reduce duplication.