The Australian Computer Society has elected Kumar Parakala as its 2008/09 new national president following a council meeting last week.

After presentations from candidates around Australia, the council elected Parakala, who is the chief operating officer of KPMG's global IT advisory practice.

During his term as president, Parakala said he plans to focus on skills, education and promoting ICT's relevance to the business community.

"As ACS national president, I intend to drive relevant national ICT strategic matters that are critical to ICT professionals such as the skills gap, ICT higher education, green issues, industry collaboration and accreditation," he said. "I will also continue to promote professionalism in ICT, as it is key to mitigating risk within the industry. This includes developing thought leadership, policies and position statements to meet the needs of members and community.

"I will also focus on promoting the relevance of ICT to business professionals. This includes understanding the ubiquitous nature of ICT and highlighting ICT's changing and enabling role across all professions."

An ICT professional for 18 years, Parakala has been a member of the ACS for almost a decade.

He has held the positions of national ACS vice president and NSW branch chairman.

Parakala was awarded the Queensland Government's Leadership Excellence Award in 2000 and has served as a member of the Queensland Government CIO Council.

He formally takes over as president on January 1, 2008, after current president, Philip Argy, completes his two year term in the top role.

Current president, Philip Argy, welcomed the election result adding that Parakala's leadership qualities and superior industry knowledge will benefit the ACS greatly.