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Former Chicago CIO Becomes Illinois' State CIO

Hardik Bhatt took five years off to work on smart cities and Internet of Things technology with Cisco, and now he's back to serve the public sector.

Former Chicago CIO Hardik Bhatt is the new Illinois state CIO -- a gap left in the state’s IT management after Sean Vinck recently departed to take a position in Oregon state government.

Bhatt returns to the public sector after spending five years with Cisco working on smart cities and Internet of Things technology. He is recognized for pushing innovation in Chicago while serving as CIO there from 2006 to 2010. Bhatt is credited with improving citizen-focused IT operations, developing IT infrastructure, building a social media presence, and assisting with the deployment of the city’s first disaster recovery center.

Colin wrote for Government Technology and Emergency Management from 2010 through most of 2016.