Tony Miller, who has been a key player in managing the stimulus money, has been tapped as the deputy education secretary, the White House announced today. Miller has been advising Secretary of Education Arne Duncan seemingly from the beginning. As the new No. 2 at the department, he seems likely to play a heavy management role—the guy who is supposed to make the department run like a well-oiled machine.

According to the White House press release, Miller has spent his career “realizing opportunities for growth, operating efficiencies, and innovation,” which sounds pretty much in line with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s agenda.

Miller has an extensive business background. He recently served as director of Silver Lake, a leading private investment firm with over $15 billion in capital. And he spent 10 years with McKinsey & Company, where he was a partner specializing in performance improvement and cost cutting, and company restructuring.

Miller has also worked quite a bit with the Los Angeles Unified School District, developing student-achievement goals and aligning budgets and operating plans, as well as creating processes for monitoring districtwide performance, according to the White House bio. He did similar work for the Santa Monica-Malibu School District.