Laura Williams

Deputy CIO, Foreign Operations

U.S. Department of State

Laura Williams is the Deputy Chief Information Officer for Foreign Operations. She started on March 1, 2023. Laura Williams joined the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Service in 2001. She currently serves as the Deputy Chief Information Officer for Foreign Operations. Laura has managed the full suite of information technology platforms that keep our diplomats in Washington and embassies around the world connected with each other and the mission they serve. Over the course of her career, she has worked to keep the Department’s sensitive data secure, advocated for better knowledge management practices, and harnessed innovative technology to amplify public diplomacy. Laura honed her crisis management skills overseas and at headquarters, led TechCamps to strengthen civil society, and fostered data literacy for diplomats. She has aligned her teams in support of the Secretary’s modernization agenda and managed policy officers working to enable a secure and resilient digital economy that reflects the United States’ collective interests and values. Laura thoroughly enjoyed assignments in Information Management roles at our American Embassies in Nicosia, Algiers, Rome, and Mexico City. She has also enjoyed a diverse range of portfolios at headquarters in Washington, DC including assignments in the Information Resource Management bureau, the Secretary’s 24×7 Operations Center, the Recruitment Office, the Foreign Service Institute’s School of Applied Information Technology, the Cyberspace and Digital Policy bureau, and the Center for Analytics. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Laura served as a contractor with the U.S. Navy Submarine Command, U.S. Department of State Consular Affairs, and U.S. Agency for International Development. She has a B.A. in International Relations from American University and multiple industry certifications in tech and project management, including the CIO Certification from the National Defense University.

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