As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state and local agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with IT leaders. Responses have been lightly edited.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Industry Insider — California’s One-on-One interview series with a spectrum of state and local IT leaders has been publishing nearly every week since June 2020. These are the five most-read conversations of 2023.
As state and local IT leaders told Industry Insider in its regular One-on-One interview series, they’re continuing to move to the cloud and harden surfaces against bad actors — while taking important steps in AI and in closing the digital divide.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
![An image of Landon Beard, CIO of Nevada County, next to a quote that reads: "We encourage [our team] to be entrepreneurs, to take the products that they own with the services that they're responsible for and maximize their usage to think about how else they can be used to find problems and solve them."](https://erepublic.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5800986/2147483647/strip/true/crop/873x490+0+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Ferepublic-brightspot.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2F97%2Fd4%2F05e3cf2b49c89b93369bf26f25d3%2Fii23-quote-beard-940x490.jpg)
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state and local government agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with the state’s IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state and local agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
State Community Services CIO: ‘Culture of Continual Improvement’ Needed to Bolster Service Provision
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on government agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on California government agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with technology leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has transformed its Information Technology Services unit to include IT practice, telecommunications, and research, development and innovation. The department onboarded its first-ever Deputy Director of Technology Scott Gregory in 2020, is working to change the user experience for staff and members of the public, and has made strides on tech projects involving fire detection and prediction.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Industry Insider — California’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Beth Cousins is chief information officer at the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), a position she has held since Feb. 18, 2020 – less than a month before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold. As previously reported by Industry Insider – California, she will step down from her role May 20 to join Yellow Wood Recovery in Rancho Cordova as chief operating officer. Her daughter is CEO there.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Wendy Weaver, chief information officer for the California Department of Conservation, says her team is in the infancy of a sprawling undertaking to transform how data is captured, stored, governed and shared.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Kevin See is deputy chief information officer at the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), a position he has held since August 2016. He was previously director of enterprise infrastructure at DWR, and before that, was chief information officer at the California Department of Conservation for more than eight years of a nearly 10-year interval at that entity. See’s state career spans approximately 18 years – punctuated by more than five years as principal consultant for the National Council on Teachers’ Retirement – and also includes more than six years at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, where his roles included project director and director of web development.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
“My biggest lesson learned is that managing a technology project is not about building and maintaining a workable system; it is about the people who use the system,” says Valerie Williams, Centralized Revenue Opportunity System project director for the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.
Thomas Schreiber has been chief information officer for Shasta County for nine years and has been with the county for 19 years, serving as IT supervisor and deputy IT director before being named CIO in November 2012. He had served four years in the U.S. Air Force and a decade in the private sector before joining Shasta. He loves the rural lifestyle, the natural resources and the 10-minute commute from his family farm to the county offices in Redding. In addition to his role at Shasta County, he’s the first vice president for the California Counties Information Services Directors Association (CCISDA) and is scheduled to assume the presidency this fall.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to inform readers about state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
“I believe that FI$Cal will continue to push the envelope and lead the way for California government entities in the adoption and use of modern technologies, systems and practices,” says Miriam Ingenito, director of the Financial Information System for California.
“I have a passion for this job. I really do. I look at every day as an opportunity and a blessing to make a change for the county and help support and improve business processes across the organization. It’s definitely a privilege and an honor to serve in this position,” says Rami Zakaria, CIO and director of the Department of Technology for Sacramento County.
“The CISO role is now seen as a trusted adviser for the organization, that serves as a thought partner to manage enterprise risk and how technology can enable the organization. ... CISOs of today must understand the business goals of the organization and how cyber risk fits in the overall organization’s strategy,” says Robert Leon, chief information security officer for Covered California.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
As part of Techwire’s ongoing efforts to educate readers on state agencies, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT and cybersecurity leaders.
“I guess I would say I’m kind of equal parts technology evangelist, strategist/futurist and project manager. I think in the big picture, (I) really focus on pushing forward the importance of technology as a whole and often in an environment which is resistant to change or adapting some old processes to technology,” says Nate Greenberg, IT director for Mono County and the town of Mammoth Lakes.
“I try to share with my staff that evidence of we are doing a great job is when we are invisible, and our coworkers get their job done seamlessly,” says Jorge Henneke, chief information officer for the California Conservation Corps.
“So, digital transformation for us — is digital services, basically, making sure your constituents have everything they need. They don’t have to drive down to City Hall for anything. They can do everything online. And we’ve come a long way as far as our department is concerned,” says Bryon Horn, chief information officer for the city of Fresno and director of its Information Services Department.
“So, beyond the typical responsibilities of a CIO, which include being responsible for the vision, strategic direction, and policy development and management of our IT systems and supporting infrastructure, our program partners require IT to be innovative, flexible, and adaptable to meet their changing needs,” says Jennifer Chan, chief information officer at the California State Lottery.
“We ... see digital transformation as a continuous process of improvement. Importantly, we take a human-centered-design perspective. It focuses on accessibility and takes many forms of customer feedback to direct our improvements. In this way, all new city digital services are built for and by city residents,” says Linda Gerull, chief information officer and executive director of San Francisco’s Department of Technology.
“We have the technology road map, where we want to go, how we want to invest in the technology, how it will reduce our technical debt, how it will help improve and make some consistent business processes and programs. A lot of these things are part of the digital transformation aspect – but I need that culture change,” says Rob Peterson, agency information officer at the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
“With different events every week and our big event, the California State Fair, every July, my role as IT manager is closely tied to the operation of our events. I don’t think my role differs all that much from a CIO’s role in that I am given the opportunity to play a big part in strategic planning,” says Pat Conner, IT manager for the California Exposition and State Fair.
“We tried the cloud five years ago and it just wasn’t there yet. It was too expensive and too slow; there were too many limitations. But I think it’s ready now and my big commitment here for the county is, I want to take our business continuity plan to a whole other level,” says Jim Smith, chief information officer for Riverside County.
“My role acts as oversight of the department’s internal IT governance process and I also coordinate with the AIO, other CIOs within CalEPA and CDT as needed,” says Michael Wanser, CIO and assistant director at the California Department of Pesticide Regulation.
“A CIO’s role is to ensure that the appropriate technology is being delivered to meet the needs of not just the department but the customer who’s relying on those services. I think it’s important that you’re in tune with what’s going on with the business,” says Steve Nash, chief information officer for the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
The newsletter’s regular series spotlights state and local government IT leaders, their changing roles and their new and ongoing technology projects.
“Now, a year into the pandemic, our department has relied on more cloud solutions and remote work (AKA telecommute or telework) as the recent adoption during the emergency pandemic. For me, the risk focus has changed from a traditional office to that of a virtual one,” says Ernest Shih, agency information security officer at the California Department of Veterans Affairs.
“The CIO must be a broker of collaboration, bringing people together so that technology can provide intended value. I make critical technology decisions, but those decisions cannot be made with blinders on,” says Marc Shorr, chief information officer at Contra Costa County.
“Working with vendors to discuss emerging technologies and services will be valuable in my role at DSS. I look forward to leveraging those vendor partner relationships to bring future innovation and efficiency to DSS,” said Richard Gillespie.
“Digital transformation will never be finished. In my mind, it’s aligning people and process and technology to enable government to deliver new services in new ways. Including digital of course, taking advantage of those emerging technologies that continue to come out. And that’s why it’s never going to be over,” says Lea Eriksen, chief information officer at the city of Long Beach.
The newly appointed state chief technology officer opens up with Techwire about leadership, public service, her black belt in karate, and how she balances being a mentor with being a lifelong learner.
“Technology is a part of everything that we do personally and in our day jobs. The role of the CIO has changed from a technologist to really understanding and collaborating (with) our program areas,” said Cheryl Larson, chief information officer for California Correctional Health Care Services.
“At the end of the day, I would categorize my job as a risk manager. It’s my job to help the organization make good risk-based decisions that minimize or mitigate adverse impacts to our business,” says Nadean Shavor, chief security officer for the California Franchise Tax Board.
“For the county, digital transformation represents the strategic position of integrating innovative technologies and approaches across the organization to modernize IT and improve the end-user experience, which improves the services provided to the public,” says Larry Ainsworth, chief information officer for San Bernardino County.
“Technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace. We are navigating another technology transformation, requiring us to move past some of our previous practices and integrate and support technology as a cross-functional business process,” says Steve Grogan, chief information officer and chief of the Office of Information Services at the state of California Air Resources Board.
“When we consider that compute translates to data transformation and exchange and better insights to make decisions — information technologies are the fundamental enablers of our present and future, and the end of growth is still not in sight,” says Imre Kabai, chief information officer for Santa Clara County.
“We are focused on being a true business partner; we have to work side by side with our executives and peers if we’re going to move business forward. Because it’s all about moving the business forward and changing the program with technology,” says Catherine Lanzaro, CIO and deputy director of the Technology Services Division for the California Department of Child Support Services.
“I am results-focused, have higher than average expectations, and will work with anyone that is putting in the effort,” says Ventura County CIO Terry Theobald. “I believe in accountability in the sense those I work with and I are both accountable.”
“In IT, we understand the critical nature of our role to provide solutions for the problems that the business is trying to solve. Without truly understanding those problems and partnering with business to create the solutions, success is more difficult to achieve. The pandemic has really highlighted the importance of that partnership,” says Heather L. Pettit, chief information officer for the Judicial Council of California.
“I think from a transformational standpoint, the role of the CIO in probably any organization, but especially in government, is to find the right balance between maintaining the status quo and not chasing every new shiny object that comes along ... but at the same time, be very aware of how things are changing,” says Jon Walton, chief information officer for San Mateo County.
“STO is in the very early stage of digital transformation as many of our business processes are still paper-based. … Like many organizations during this time, we are all working in a very fluid environment that requires us to pivot quickly to meet the demand of the situation,” says David Duarte, chief information officer at the State Treasurer’s Office.
“I will be continuing a CHHS cybersecurity strategic assessment of all CHHS departments with a focus on moving towards a more coordinated/aligned approach across all CHHS departments and offices,” says Lloyd Indig, agency information security officer at the California Health and Human Services Agency.
“We need to build on our successes achieved during the pandemic, continue to be flexible and further expand our technology capabilities and civic responsibilities in the challenging years ahead. Over the past year, we’ve given our residents stability due to our ability to go virtual in a short amount of time,” says Hong Sae, chief information officer for the city of Roseville.
“In my opinion, the value of digital transformation is most evident when we create meaningful efficiencies, increase transparency and improve the user experience. As with many agencies in the state, CALPIA is continually transforming. I do not anticipate a day where we say we are finished; only a day where we ask ourselves what we’re going to tackle next,” says Suzie Changus, CIO for the California Prison Industry Authority.
“Probably the biggest challenge right now is, the security is ever-changing and very dynamic. It’s my job to utilize all the available funds that we have and the staff that we have and the technology to stay on top of any and all potential vulnerabilities within the agency,” says Mike Marshall, agency information security officer for the California Environmental Protection Agency.
“There may be another major evolution like the agricultural or industrial or informational ages, but I think in general, transformation is a forever process. That’s a part of my role to act as the counselor and try to help people accommodate change in their work lives,” says Brent Coe, chief information officer at the California Tahoe Conservancy.
“The role of the CIO has moved from being primarily technical to one that requires an understanding of the business requirements of the department and prioritizes our customer needs. Therefore, we are constantly adapting to meet their needs and developing forward-looking technology solutions,” says Scott Capulong, chief information officer at the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.
“I would say the role of CISO has evolved from being an IT-centered role to … definitely a strategic leadership function for most organizations,” says Jake Margolis, chief information security officer at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
“I would say just very simply that digital transformation, to me, is solving business problems using technology as an enabler. I don’t want ‘digital transformation’ to be a buzzword that doesn’t have any action behind it,” says Chief Information Officer Bill Kehoe.
“Given the whole environment, we decided to take a step back and much more closely align our work with the overall organization; and rather than do a strategic plan, we said, ‘These are our priorities for the next two years until we can realign with the next CalPERS strategic plan,’” says Chief Information Officer Christian Farland.
“The majority of my role is making sure and communicating what our initiatives are, what we’re targeting here, how that’s going to improve our internal operations; and then, in the end, how does that improve the service to the end user?” says Chief Information Officer Bryan Sastokas.
“I view digital transformation as a foundational change in how an organization delivers value to its customers by solving business problems through an aggregation of modern processes and technology capabilities,” says Chief Information Officer Subbarao Mupparaju.
“I think the traditional role of the CIO has really evolved significantly over the past few years, and the CIO role is becoming much more aligned with the business and strategy of organizations,” says Chief Information Officer Jonathan Behnke.
“My function as CIO is best summed up in two words: service and security,” Chief Chris Childs says. “When it comes to service, IT’s role is to reduce the amount of time our officers spend thinking about technology, in turn providing them more time to spend serving the public. Regarding security, the department takes the protection of the public’s personal identifying information very seriously.”
“As OTA’s new CIO, I am working closely with the Executive Management Team and program staff to help bring technology innovations and best practices to the organization, to meet our missions and critical business needs,” says Chief Information Officer Hieu Truong.
“The environment felt very much like a startup," Thomas Boon said. “It was hectic, exciting, and my role was similar to that of a chief technology officer (CTO). ... Now, my primary role is to make sure that GO-Biz’s technology strategy serves its business strategy.”
"We’re using multiple database tools, we’re using multiple visualization platforms, we’re using multiple analytics platforms, and I’d like to leverage fewer of them to better support our environment," says Chief Information Officer Kevin Cornish.
Jon Kirkham, chief information officer at the California Department of Rehabilitation, shares his definition of digital transformation and discusses the ongoing Vocational Rehabilitation Connections Project as well as priorities for 2021.
Keson Khieu, chief information officer at the California Emergency Medical Services Authority, discusses the value of big data and data analytics as “a business differentiator for emergency medical services areas,” and the “organic” nature of digital transformation.
Chad Crowe, chief information officer at the California Department of Human Resources, discusses the many aspects of his work, an ongoing cross-agency Enterprise Human Resources effort, and speeding up procurement.
