Army CIO Leonel Garciga Wins 2nd Wash100 Award for Modernization & Cybersecurity Efforts
Executive Mosaic is more than honored to recognize U.S. Army Chief Information Officer Leonel Garciga with the 2025 Wash100 Award for his valuable contributions to the Army’s modernization and cybersecurity initiatives.
Show your support for Garciga by voting for him in the Wash100 popular vote competition. Go to Wash100.com to cast your vote. You only have until April 30 to do so!
The prestigious Wash100 Award recognizes 100 exceptional figures in the government contracting industry. These esteemed individuals are chosen for their significant contributions in the past year and their innovative vision that will help shape the industry’s future.
“Leonel is at the forefront of the Army’s digital transformation, tackling everything from IPv6 modernization to cloud adoption with a sharp focus on warfighter readiness,” said Jim Garrettson, CEO of Executive Mosaic and founder of the Wash100 Award. “His leadership is shaping how the service secures and streamlines its networks for the future fight. As a keynote speaker at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Army Summit, Leonel memorably underscored the urgency of digital modernization and the steps needed to get there. I’m thrilled to recognize him with a Wash100 Award for his vision and impact!”
Leading the Pursuit of a Modernized Army
Since taking office in 2023, Garciga has been continuing the work begun by his predecessor, Raj Iyer, in spearheading the Army’s modernization through the Digital Transformation Strategy. During the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Army Summit last June, the CIO pointed out the top priorities that need to be addressed en route to “faster-than-ever software delivery, acquisition, testing, training and other critical initiatives.” Garciga stressed the importance of addressing “resource understanding bureaucracy” and enhancing DevSecOps pipelines for capabilities delivered to the Army. Furthermore, he believes a new approach to leveraging all the capabilities is necessary and that establishing the foundations before adopting and implementing technologies like artificial intelligence should also be a priority.
In line with this, the Army is working on establishing a digital center for excellence aimed at modernizing its software procurement process. He also enforced a mobile application authorization process providing officials a more efficient way of authorizing mobile applications that link to Army systems.
Enhancing Cybersecurity
Under Garciga, the Army adopted five new policies in December aimed at enhancing cybersecurity through DevSecOps and software development to ensure tools are delivered to soldiers quickly and safely.
In February, Garciga signed a number of memos as part of his advocacy to safeguard sensitive data and maintain the integrity of the Army’s IT systems. Garciga endorses the implementation of a data aggregation framework that is designed to identify, assess and mitigate risks. The Army’s software assurance policy, meanwhile, requires all Army systems to validate software assurance requirements against the standards of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Three Decades as a Civil Servant
Garciga first served the Army in 2019 as the director of information management before his promotion to CIO. Before that, he was the chief technology officer of the Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Organization under the Department of Defense and an intelligence analyst and IT specialist at the Defense Intelligence Agency. He also served in the Navy for over 11 years as a mechanical engineer and machinist’s mate.
Since Garciga was appointed Army CIO, he has been at the forefront of the service branch’s digital modernization. A huge part of this initiative is ensuring that sensitive data are kept safe from emerging threats. For his efforts, Garciga deserves to be included in the prestigious list of 2025 Wash100 Award recipients.
Executive Mosaic extends its warmest congratulations to Leonel Garciga for his well-deserved Wash100 recognition. Show your support by voting for him at Wash100.com.