Bryan Beyer is the chief deputy inspector general and chief information officer for the California Office of the Inspector General. He provided the following introduction:
"My service in California state government includes more than 20 years of professional experience. In several positions, I have served as a senior executive in charge of both managing and overseeing California’s complex state prison system. The California Office of the Inspector General is an independent state agency that oversees certain aspects of California’s prison system, which is operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (the department). I was appointed by the governor to serve as the chief deputy inspector general. In this capacity, I serve as second-in-command of the office, in which I am responsible for managing and directing operations. Toward that end, I set policy for and oversee the scope of the office’s complex legislative mandates — these include the following: overseeing and monitoring the department’s employee investigation and disciplinary processes; monitoring uses of force that occur in the state’s 35 prisons; performing medical inspections of health-care delivery to adult inmates; conducting special performance reviews pertaining to the department; performing background investigations of the department’s warden and superintendent candidates; investigating complaints of sexual abuse in prisons; investigating complaints concerning departmental employee retaliation; monitoring critical incidents that occur in prisons; and processing complaints from both the public and departmental employees. Moreover, as chief information officer, I manage the office’s information and computer technologies as well as direct production for all of its public reports and other public-facing domains, such as the office’s website.
"I graduated from California State University, Chico, with a bachelor of science degree in business administration, and received an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. I am a Certified Inspector General (CIG) through the Association of Inspectors General and also serve as the interim vice president of the Western States Chapter of the Association of Inspectors General."
Techwire: As CIO of your organization, how do you describe your role? How have the role and responsibilities of the CIO changed in recent years?
Beyer: As chief information officer, I am responsible for, among other things, managing the office’s information and computer technologies. In today’s government sector, technology is interwoven in the fabric of nearly every aspect of our jobs. My focus remains on using the right technology for the right purpose; and in so doing, I am constantly evaluating and re-evaluating the software and hardware solutions needed for my organization.
Techwire: How big a role do you personally play in writing your organization’s strategic plan?
Beyer: As second-in-command of the office, I play a large part in producing the office’s strategic plan. In our most recent plan, which we issued in April 2020, I met with various members of the office’s strategic planning team and provided them with guidance concerning the direction of the office. I was also responsible for approving the final product before publication.
Techwire: What big initiatives or projects are coming in 2021? What sorts of RFPs should we be watching for in the next six to 12 months?
Beyer: As a small state agency, the California Office of the Inspector General is largely self-sufficient with respect to its digital footprint. We have an incredible team of IT professionals, including programmers and technicians, who keep our organization on point. We are in a constant state of “digital” development with various initiatives. One, in particular, will put much of the data that we currently analyze internally on our public-facing website. Coming soon will be a series of dashboards that display our oversight of critical incidents that occurred within the prison system, such as unexpected deaths, large-scale riots, or other significant matters that required our attention. We also plan to publish another dashboard that will display the detailed results of our monitoring of uses of force within the prison system. These dashboards are key to our primary role: to provide transparency to an otherwise closed system.
Techwire: How do you define “digital transformation,” and how far along is your organization in that process? How will you know when it's finished?
Beyer: Technology has and continues to change the way government operates; in particular, in the way government serves its taxpayers. In my view, digital transformation is the manner in which technology evolves. It is a continual process, and in my opinion, will never be “finished.” My organization views digital transformation as an evolving reality; to keep up we need to be open to new ideas and adapt to our environment. This is an agile framework built around user needs, data, and change management.
Techwire: What is your estimated IT budget, and how many employees do you have? What is the overall budget?
Beyer: The California Office of the Inspector General has about 130 employees and operates an annual budget of approximately $29 million. Typically, we spend about $600,000 each year on various IT products and outside services.
Techwire: How do you prefer to be contacted by vendors, including via social media such as LinkedIn? How might vendors best educate themselves before meeting with you?
Beyer: I can be reached through a variety of means: our website has contact information, through email, or by telephone. My office maintains a social media presence with Facebook and Twitter as well. We have a highly informative website with numerous types of digital content, and I would point prospective vendors to it to educate themselves on our mission and services.
Techwire: In your tenure in this position, which project or achievement are you most proud of?
Beyer: I am most proud of the production and public release of our Data Explorer, which can be found on our website. This site allows the public to see incredibly detailed, case-specific information concerning our monitoring of prison-employees’ discipline cases, as well as visual displays of the results. The information is filterable, sortable, and printable; it is also easy to digest. Significantly, the Data Explorer will be constantly changing and updating to reflect our conclusions, getting us closer and closer to real-time reporting.
Techwire: What do you read to stay abreast of developments in the gov tech/SLED sector?
Beyer: I am an avid consumer of news, in general, so I stay tuned to government-sector issues by following all types of news organizations, technology-focused websites, and social media outlets.
Techwire: What are your hobbies, and what do you enjoy reading?
Beyer: As an outdoor enthusiast, I enjoy hiking in the Sierra Nevada mountains and in the surrounding lakes in and around Lake Tahoe. I also enjoy reading large-scale, multi-volume science fiction and fantasy stories.
