The Department of Homeland Security has turned to a Department of Government Efficiency team member as its next chief information officer, sources familiar with the plans told Federal News Network.
DOGE affiliate Kyle Schutt has been named acting DHS CIO. Schutt has been working in various roles across DHS and other agencies as a DOGE team member since early 2025.
In a Thursday email sent to DHS management directorate staff and obtained by Federal News Network, Under Secretary for Management Brian Cavanaugh confirmed the planned departure of current CIO Antoine McCord and the appointment of Schutt as acting CIO.
Cavanaugh wrote that Schutt’s first day will be August 31. Like McCord, he will also serve as director of DHS’s Office of Biometric Identity Management.
Who Is Kyle Schutt?
Schutt is a software engineer who previously worked as chief technology officer at the online fundraising platform Revv. He also developed the GOP online fundraising platform WinRed, according to his now-deleted LinkedIn.
Since joining DOGE in early 2025, Schutt has spent much of his time at DHS, having been detailed to both the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, according to multiple media reports.
With DOGE, Schutt was involved in collecting data used to terminate grants and make other spending decisions at FEMA, according to depositions in a lawsuit challenging FEMA staffing cuts.
Earlier this month, Wired reported that a startup owned by Schutt was a DHS subcontractor while he served at DOGE as a senior advisor at the department. The outlet reported that Schutt’s startup was paying FEMA’s “shadow administrator” at the time.
A Positive Impression
While Schutt’s DOGE work has drawn scrutiny, a former DHS official said their experience working with him was “positive”.
“He’s smart and knows software and IT systems. He was always polite and professional… It’s an interesting choice, given he doesn’t have much experience in federal, but he broadly gained access to a lot of stuff in all his roles across DHS,” the former official said.
The CIO Role
The DHS CIO is an influential position, sitting at the center of a sprawling department that increasingly relies on technology and data. The CIO’s office works on technology needs for DHS components ranging from CISA and FEMA to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Coast Guard. DHS’s annual IT spending has totaled roughly $10 billion in recent years.
McCord had served as DHS CIO since March 2025. During his time as CIO, he reorganized the DHS CIO’s office itself, while also seeking to consolidate enterprise IT contracting across the department. He also consolidated OBIM and established a “DHS data fabric,” according to Cavanaugh.
The Bottom Line
DHS has named DOGE affiliate Kyle Schutt as its acting CIO, effective August 31. Schutt, a software engineer who previously developed the GOP fundraising platform WinRed, has been working across DHS and other agencies as a DOGE team member since early 2025. He replaces Antoine McCord and will also lead the Office of Biometric Identity Management.
