Allen is the Acting CIO of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. He has been in this role since December 2008. Before this position, Allen was the Deputy CIO for Business and IT Modernization. Prior to that, Allen was the Associate Chief Information Officer for Cyber Security at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Additionally, Allen served as the Assistant Inspector General for IT at the U.S. Department of State from 2003 to 2005. Before working there, Allen was the Director of the Network Lifecycle Management Division from 2002 to 2003. Allen was the Branch Chief for the centralized information technology help desk from 2000 to 2002.
Allen also has a military background. He served in the U.S. Air Force where worked as an Information Manager, as well as an Electronics Countermeasures specialist. Allen graduated from Central Michigan University, where he earned a Master’s of Science Administration. He attended University of Maryland University College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Studies. He also attended Strayer University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems.