Workforce and People

Soft skills are essential to good cybersecurity — a lesson Erik Avakian has learned over the course of his more than 12 years as chief information security officer for the state of Pennsylvania.

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has announced the appointment of Donald Beamer Jr. as the city’s first senior technology adviser to help build on the city’s technology workforce and business ecosystem.

Having stepped down earlier this month, Georgia CISO David Allen has been replaced by interim CISO Mike Davis, who returns to the Georgia Technology Authority after a three-year stint with another state agency.

A long-simmering issue of worker shortages in public transit became most apparent following the COVID-19 pandemic which saw a high rate of departing workers citing low pay and poor working conditions.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has named several new senior staff members to the Department of Technology.

Plus, the Biden-Harris administration has released a resource to accelerate infrastructure projects; California breaks ground on its middle-mile network; Results for America highlights data-driven work successes; and more.

The state’s Office of Management and Enterprise Services announced the move. Singleton, who became CISO in 2019, led the OMES Cyber Command team and helped to secure remote work for state employees, among other tasks.

As Shawn Riley nears the end of his time as North Dakota’s CIO, he shared the positive advances the state has made in the technology space, while hoping to making an even bigger impact from the private sector.

Russian-linked ransomware. Billions of dollars in cyber insurance. A growing workforce. Understanding the latest data on cybersecurity in the public sector is critical to establishing a secure and productive operation.

With more than 25 years of IT management experience, Ed Clark comes to the nation’s largest university system with an eye on online classes, educational resources, student equity and other learning challenges.

Through internships and hands-on experience, Georgia CIO Shawnzia Thomas is building a pipeline of new staff for her agency and showing them the value of working in government.

As cybersecurity threats change over time, so do the jobs of those tasked with fighting them. In many states, the CISO is now working outside the IT agency to protect the wider enterprise.

After nearly six years of working with the state of North Dakota, Chief Information Officer Shawn Riley has announced his forthcoming departure from the position to shift to a new role in the private sector.

A newly released White House fact sheet highlights national cybersecurity efforts and plans, including around cybersecurity labels for consumer IoT, international ransomware-fighting collaborations and more.

CISOs are gaining attention outside the IT office and cyber funding isn’t a top challenge — for the first time in survey history. But CISOs still wrestle with talent gaps and need to strengthen local relationships to build whole-of-state approaches.

Maki will join the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's (DEED) senior leadership team, overseeing the state's broadband expansion and development efforts.

The annual survey of state and territorial CIOs found that emphasis has shifted away from expanding remote and hybrid work and toward legacy modernization and digital services after COVID-19.

The state plans to open cyber ranges and security operations centers at state colleges and universities. Students would get hands-on training and a career start, while the operations would provide localities with cyber analysis.