US President Joe Biden elevated Indian American Gautam Raghavan to a new position making him head of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel.Biden announced Raghavan's promotion to the key White House post in place of Cathy Russell. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced his intent to appoint Cathy as the next executive director of UNICEF. Russell is currently the head of WH PPO.

"I am also pleased that Gautam Raghavan, who has worked in tandem with Cathy from Day One, will become PPO's new director -- a seamless transition that will enable us to continue building a federal workforce that is efficient, effective, dependable and diverse," Biden said in a statement.Under Cathy's leadership, the White House Office of Presidential Personnel (PPO) has broken records in both speed and diversity of hiring, working relentlessly to ensure that our federal government reflects America and delivers for the American people, according to Biden.

Gautam Raghavan has served as deputy assistant to the President and deputy director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel since January 20, 2020. Previously, he was the first employee hired by the Biden-Harris Transition Team where he served as deputy head of Presidential Appointments.

A first-generation immigrant, Raghavan was born in India, raised in Seattle and graduated from Stanford University. He is the editor of "West Wingers: Stories from the Dream Chasers, Change Makers, and Hope Creators Inside the Obama White House." He lives with his family in Washington, DC.