University of Adelaide appoints first CIO

The University of Adelaide has appointed its first chief information officer as it steps up its strategic focus on IT and e-learning.

The university has snagged former Portland State University CIO Mark Gregory for the role, which will kick off in July.

Gregory most recently led the finance and administration arm at Portland State, and prior to his time in the higher education sector worked with Applied Systems and founded his own IT implementation and software development firm.

University of Adelaide vice-president Paul Duldig said the appointment was a coup for the university, which was planning to treble its investment on IT learning support and e-learning over the next decade.

The appointment comes four years after the university went to market for a CIO, but was unhappy with the strategic management experience of applicants. At the time it appointed former computer science professor David Munro who remains in the role of associate director, IT strategy and architecture.

Gregory said he was looking forward to working with the faculty, staff and students.

“World-class technology will be essential to remain competitive, enhance student learning and grow research collaboration opportunities. It is an ideal time for the technology team to make a transformative contribution to a great institution," he said in a statement.