CSC CIO Ben Patey quits to join University of Newcastle

After a 13-year tenure at IT services giant, CSC, Ben Patey has jumped into the tertiary education sector, landing a role as the associate director, solution delivery and operations with the IT services group at the University of Newcastle (UoN).

Patey, who wore the CIO hat for the last seven years, also held a number of roles during his time at the systems integrator including head of IT, corporate IT strategy and program manager, corporate IT operations manager; and service delivery manager. Prior to CSC, Patey was the midrange manager for BHP Billiton.

Patey has extensive experience in IT having been involved in a number of roles over his 30-year career ranging from applications development through service delivery to operations and strategic management.

He has significant experience in the application of IT across the manufacturing, resources industry verticals and in services and outsourcing with particular interest in the use of business intelligence, business process management and the successfully deployment of social networking in the enterprise.

In his new role at the university, which will report into the CIO, Patey told CIO Australia the job enables him to own architecture, development, support and operations. “It is part of a repositioning of the IT services group to support the university’s 2025 new futures strategy. We are reorganising, and have reorganised, to enable the university to take advantage of many things and to support where they want to be in five to ten years.”

Patey said he is eager to sink his teeth into the new role, given there’s lots of interesting projects underway. He also wanted to end his commuting days.

“I am a Newcastle boy so I have spent the last 16 years commuting to Sydney. I have lived in Newcastle my whole life so it was a great opportunity that came up here. A change in scenery, but also the ability to spend a bit more time with the family.”

Meanwhile, Patey’s CIO position at CSC has been immediately filled by Mary Siourounis, who was working in the office of the CIO as an integral part of the regional CIO team for the past three years, according to a CSC spokesperson.

“We would personally like to thank Ben for the huge contribution he has made to CSC and welcome Mary to her new role,” a CSC spokesperson said in a statement.

Siourounis started at CSC in 1997 as a graduate programmer and progressed through as a senior business analyst, working in the business excellence team.

More to follow.