Philadelphia CIO Steps Down

Philadelphia's CIO is stepping down. Terry Phillis, who was appointed to the position by former Mayor John Street and is the last holdover from that administration, is resigning at the end of July, according to an article in The Philadelphia Inquirer. A spokesman for Mayor Michael Nutter said Phillis is leaving voluntarily, but sources in the city's administration told the newspaper that Phillis was being forced out over differences with city Managing Director Camille Cates Barnett on the implementation of a citywide 311 system. While serving Street, Phillis was a member of the mayor's Cabinet, but his position under Nutter was downgraded and he reports to Barnett.

State CIO news:

Rizwan Ahmed is no longer Louisiana's CIO, according to the National Association of State Chief Information Officers. Edward Driesse was named CIO in late July.

Colorado CIO Mike Locatis has been nominated for a Colorado Software and Internet Association Apex Award, the largest annual technology award in Colorado.

The National Governors Association (NGA) recognized Arizona CIO Chris Cummiskey for his leadership and record of achievement on state issues, including Arizona's e-health initiative and 211 hotline for social services. Cummiskey was honored at the NGA's Centennial Meeting in Philadelphia.

National Strategies Inc. (NSI), a Washington, D.C.-based government and business consulting firm, announced it has appointed Roy Cales, former CIO of Florida, as head of NSI's technology sector. Cales is a well known IT industry veteran and was Florida's first CIO.

In other news:

The Society for Information Management (SIM) named Orlando, Fla., CIO Conrad Cross to the SIMposium 2008 Advisory Council. Consisting of 16 prominent CIOs and senior IT executives, the council provides strategic input and thought leadership for SIM's exclusive annual event, taking place Nov. 9-12, 2008, at Disney's Contemporary Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Mark Weatherford was appointed by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to be executive officer for the Office of Information Security and Privacy Protection. Weatherford served as Colorado's chief information security officer since 2005. Prior to that appointment by Colorado Gov. Bill Owens in 2005 and reappointment by Governor Bill Ritter in 2007, Weatherford served as an information assurance program manager with the Raytheon Company where he worked on programs with the U.S. Department of Defense.

In Washington, D.C., Charles Armstrong was named CIO and assistant commissioner for the Office of Information Technology within U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Armstrong was formerly deputy CIO for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.