Ms. Karen S Howard is Head of the Office of Online Services at IRS.

She joined the public sector and the IRS in August of 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 global pandemic; with 40+ years of private sector retail, manufacturing and financial services consumer-direct operations, content management and marketing leadership experience.

Ms. Howard has a Bachelor of Science degree from Western Carolina University, along with several industry certifications in various project management methodologies, product management, human computer interaction (HCI) and master data management. Ms. Howard, in her role as Head of the Office of Online Services, is charged with providing strategic guidance and tactical oversight to a team of 200+ public servants focused on understanding and translating the tax paying community’s voice and behavior, and internal stakeholder requirements, into an empowered user experience. This responsibility enables easy access to tax-related information and simplified ways to fulfil tax obligations with digital tools, process, and services on IRS.gov.

Ms. Howard has one son (PFC Frank Daniel Brown II) who, after graduating college, joined the US Army in May 2021 in the career field of Unmanned Aircrafts.