Hudson La Force III serves as chief operating officer for the Department. In this role, La Force is responsible for helping the Department meet its strategic goals, strengthening internal accountability systems, implementing the President's Management Agenda, and improving management of the Department's personnel, financial systems, and information technology. He manages the Risk Management Services group in the Office of the Secretary and works with the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, the Office of Management, and the Office of the Chief Information Officer on the Department's management and organizational transformation initiatives.

La Force joined the Department in 2005 and has served as senior counselor to the secretary and as deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development.

Prior to joining the Department in 2005, La Force worked for nearly 20 years in the private sector. Most recently, he was a general manager with Dell Inc. in China. During his 2-1/2 years there, he increased the revenue of his business unit more than 50 percent and nearly quadrupled the unit's profitability. Prior to this assignment, he held a series of increasingly responsible executive positions with Dell and other technology manufacturing companies.

In 2002, La Force founded the nonprofit Project on Government Leadership, an Austin, Texas-based research group.

La Force earned a master's degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a bachelor's degree from Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where he graduated summa cum laude.