By design: the C-suite in May

New roles, new responsibilities: It’s your tech C-suite moves for May.

Microsoft appoints Jon Friedman as company’s first chief design officer

Tech giant Microsoft created the role of chief design officer and filled the position May 14. Jon Friedman, a longtime Microsoft employee, will take on the role; he described it as one that will “reduce fragmentation, increase alignment, and make innovation at scale real across the company” in a post on LinkedIn announcing his appointment.

Friedman has been working his way through the Microsoft ranks since 2004. He was previously corporate VP of design and research.

“As the practice of design evolves, UX practitioners are becoming more technical, working across the full stack of the experience,” Friedman wrote on LinkedIn. “From interface and interaction design to the intelligence underneath, human-centered thinking has to be present at every layer.”

Beth Tschida is Jamf’s new CEO

Jamf, the Apple device management platform, named Beth Tschida CEO on May 20, the culmination of her eight years at the company.

Tschida was already interim CEO as of March 2026. She takes over from John Strosahl, who ran Jamf from September 2023 until transitioning out in May (the two overlapped).

In a post on LinkedIn, Tschida cited the increasing importance of AI as central to Jamf’s future: “The work ahead is real. AI is reshaping how organizations operate, and our job is to put AI to work on Apple, securely and at scale.”

The Feds’ new deputy CIO is Thomas Flagg

Federal IT is a serious business, and the government turned to an internal option on May 7, plucking Thomas Flagg from the Department of Education. Flagg spent over 11 years at the agency in IT roles, most recently as director of the directorate of business application services.

In an email to staff, federal CIO Gregory Barbaccia said that Flagg’s diversity of experience won him the job over a pool of applicants.

“Thomas comes into this role having most recently sat in the Agency CIO seat himself,” Barbaccia wrote. “He understands firsthand the operational realities, constraints, frustrations, and opportunities that agency technology leaders face every day.”