RALEIGH, (SGRToday.com) - Chris Estes is leaving his job as North Carolina's State Chief Information Officer. His last day is Nov. 29.

The governor's office says Estes will return to the firm he worked for more in 2000, PwC Consulting.

“Not only has he saved the taxpayers millions of dollars," said Gov. Pat McCrory in a statement, "the customer-first attitude he brought from his private sector experience has made it easier for individual citizens and small business owners to interact and do business with state government.”

Deputy State Chief Information Officer Keith Werner will step in to the job as acting CIO.

The Department of Information Technology has just become a Cabinet-level agency, at the governor's request and with approval by the General Assembly.

The governor often cites the state's uncoordinated IT systems as a key impediment to efficiency and a key challenge he faced when taking office.

Estes established the iCenter, a try-it-before-you-buy-it operation that tests IT related items before committing the state to purchasing them. It has received three national awards.