IE 11 Not Supported

For optimal browsing, we recommend Chrome, Firefox or Safari browsers.

CIO Career Changes 2018: Highlights of Who Went Where

All year, we track the major job moves of state, city and county technology leaders. Whether coming into a new position or moving on from an old one, these tech chiefs drove changes in cybersecurity, analytics and more.

2018 was a big year for IT leadership change. Longtime stalwarts of state and local gov tech moved on from their posts, their roles filled by new faces ready to continue the work of their predecessors or take it in entirely new directions. At every level of government across the country, CIOs worked to drive change in infrastructure, cybersecurity, analytics and more. Here’s a look back at the major moves of the year.

JANUARY

Following the retirement of Commissioner Anne Roest (pictured below) the New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications hired Samir Saini, previously the CIO of Atlanta, to take her place.

Mark Wheeler was named interim CIO of Philadelphia — a change made permanent in September — after Charles Brennan was removed from the position.

Washington, D.C., chose its first-ever chief data officer, Barney Krucoff, to replace outgoing Chief Technology Officer Archana Vemulapalli in an interim capacity.

roest.jpgMichael Mattmiller, Seattle’s CTO of four years, resigned his post.

Chris Seidt, a Louisville, Ky., IT veteran, began work as the city’s director of information technology.

New Jersey CTO Dave Weinstein announced his departure just ahead of the arrival of a new gubernatorial administration.

Longtime Montana CIO Ron Baldwin left government for a role with Deloitte.


February

State CIO Shanna Rahming left her post in Nevada after three years, and later took the lead at the Illinois Office of Strategy and Planning.


March

San Francisco elevated Deputy CIO Krista Canellakis to the CIO position following the departure of Jay Nath, who vacated the post for a nonprofit position that would allow him to focus more exclusively on the Startup in Residence program he helped create.

New York City CTO Miguel Gamiño departed for the private sector in March, taking a role with Mastercard in May.

St. Louis hired Robert Gaskill-Clemons as its first-ever CTO; at the same time, the city also announced that Cindy Riordan, a city hall staffer of 23 years, had recently begun work as the new CIO.


April

Tanya Hannah was named the permanent CIO of King County, Wash., having previously served in an interim capacity since October 2017.

Michael Dietrich was named the new CIO of Nevada after positions with LinkedIn, Ericsson and more.

Thirty-year municipal staffer Mary J. Miller announced her retirement as Kansas City, Mo.’s CIO, and Deputy CIO David Evans was immediately appointed as her replacement.


May

Oakland County, Mich., hired the first woman to ever serve as its chief information security officer, Bridget Kravchenko.

Cook County, Ill., CIO Simona Rollinson announced her return to the private sector, prompting a search for her replacement while the county also hired its inaugural chief data officer, Dessa Gypalo.


June

Five-year Chicago CDO Tom Schenk headed for the private sector.

New Jersey hired Christopher Rein, former deputy director of the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell, as its second chief technology officer.

Elayne Starkey, Delaware’s chief security officer of 13 years, retired from state service.

Rob St. John, acting CIO, and Agnes Kirk, chief information security officer, both retired from the ranks of Washington state.

Alex Pettit, Oregon CIO, tendered his resignation, having served in the position since 2014.

Alaska added the position of innovation officer to its IT office, which was filled by Jason Schneider.

Arkansas’ Department of Information Systems named Jennifer Davis, a former legal adviser for DIS and the Department of Education, as its first chief privacy officer.

Lea Eriksen permanently became Long Beach, Calif.’s director of technology and innovation, having
t25-web-small-ambs.jpg
filled the position in an interim status since CIO Bryan Sastokas left the city for the same position with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority in March.

After seven years as CIO of Albuquerque, N.M., Peter Ambs (pictured at right) left to become the assistant CIO of Phoenix.


July

Montana Department of Revenue CIO Tim Bottenfield was chosen to lead the state’s IT department.

Carlos Rivero was appointed as Virginia’s inaugural chief data officer.

Former Rhode Island Director of Government Innovation Kevin Parker was appointed CIO for the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology’s education cluster.


August

Longtime state CIO in Ohio Stu Davis retired, later announcing he had taken a position with data analytics firm Sense Corp. The state named Deputy CIO Spencer Wood as the interim and later the permanent replacement.

GovLab Founder Beth Simone Noveck was tapped as the first chief innovation officer for the state of New Jersey.

New Mexico CIO Darryl Ackley left for a position in academia after serving the state since 2011.

Rod Davenport, Michigan’s longtime CTO, stepped down from his state position to become CIO of the Lansing Board of Water and Light.


September

Alaska launched a search for a new CIO after Bill Vajda resigned.

Charlotte, N.C., CIO Jeff Stovall returned to the private sector after more than 10 years as the city’s head of IT.

New Jersey named Carrie Parikh the state’s chief data and privacy officer, as well as chief operating officer of the Office of Information Technology.

Following a tenure of more than six years, Maine CIO Jim Smith retired.

Michael+Roling
After a lengthy search, Atlanta announced its new CIO Gary Brantley, who previously served in the same role at DeKalb County Schools.

Minneapolis CIO Otto Doll retired from his position after more than seven years. He was formerly the longtime CIO of South Dakota.

The leader of San Francisco’s data work, CDO Joy Bonaguro, stepped down and took a position at Corelight.

Michael Roling (pictured at left) who served as Missouri’s CISO since 2009, departed his role for a private software company.


October

North Dakota named longtime private-sector tech executive Dorman Bazzell as the state’s first chief data officer.

After nearly 11 years as CIO, Tennessee’s Mark Bengel announced his retirement, and Deputy CIO Stephanie Dedmon was elevated to fill the position.

Delaware announced Solomon Adote, who previously worked for the state’s Department of Technology and Information from 2003 to 2006, as its new chief security officer.

To fill a role that was vacant for more than a year, New York City named Kelly Jin (pictured below) as its new chief
kelly-jin.jpg
Photo by Jason Dixson Photography. www.jasondixson.com
Jason Dixson/Jason Dixson Photography / www.jasondixson.com
analytics officer and director of the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics.

Missouri hired Mike Cheles as its permanent CIO, and longtime acting CIO Rich Kliethermes stepped into the role of acting deputy director at the state’s Information Technologies Services Division.


November

Washington state named James Weaver as its permanent CIO, replacing Vikki Smith, who had been serving in an acting capacity. Weaver was previously CTO of Pennsylvania.