Bob Costello, Chief Information Officer, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

Robert (Bob) Costello is the Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). As the CIO, he leads the Agency’s efforts to develop, deploy, secure, and support technology solutions for the agency. Prior to this, he was a Public Sector Civilian Strategic Advisor at World Wide Technology. In this role, he engaged with federal government customers to identify and solve their most complex challenges, leveraging his extensive federal agency experience to develop and deliver innovative solutions that meet their needs and serve their mission. Bob brings a wealth of experience serving over 13 years at DHS, both at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. He also served as the Senior Executive Service as the Executive Director (XD) of the Office of Information and Technology (OIT) Enterprise Networks and Technology Support Directorate (ENTSD) at CBP, as well as serving concurrently in the role of Acting XD of the Border Enforcement and Management Systems Directorate. During his tenure in ENTSD, he oversaw the modernization of the largest data network in DHS, improved connectivity to cloud service providers, and dramatically increased the agency’s usage of mobility platforms. He also oversaw the agency’s movement to the TIC 3.0 framework and implemented zero trust solutions at the network level. He led the operations of the agency’s land mobile radio network, the National Law Enforcement Communications Center, and maintenance of the non-intrusive inspection systems utilized at all ports of entry. He also directed all software development for the U.S. Border Patrol, and all of the agency’s mission support systems, moving over 100 applications to a SECDEVOPS development methodology. He was also heavily involved in implementing IT solutions for COVID-19, redesigning remote access solutions and deploying several new applications. Earlier in his career, Costello served as the Deputy Executive Director (DXD) and acting XD for OIT’s Field Support Directorate (FSD) supporting information technology, radio systems, and enforcement technologies worldwide, as well as worked at ICE as the Director of Network Engineering overseeing networks worldwide and implementing solutions for mobility and datacenter migrations, e-discovery, and collaboration solutions. Costello is a nine-year veteran of the U.S Air Force and U.S. Air Force Reserves. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Organizational Leadership from Fordham University and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional and Project Management Professional.