Workforce and People

Batalla, who led information technology operations for the city of San Leandro, Calif., since February 2014, has accepted the CIO position in Santa Cruz County’s Information Services Department.

All city technology agencies will now operate under the Office of Technology and Innovation, overseen by Chief Technology Officer Matthew Fraser. Fraser took over the CTO position earlier this month.

Clay Garner began working with San Jose in 2019 as a tech policy analyst. He replaces Jordan Sun as the city’s chief innovation officer and comes to the position with a commitment to digital inclusion.

With a $735,000 grant from the Semiconductor Research Corporation, the university aims to ramp up research and workforce development in microelectronics to tackle supply chain issues and build next-generation technology.

After an eight-year tenure as CIO of Chattanooga, Tenn., Brent Messer has left his role. His replacement is Tyson Morris, who serves as global head of architecture, platforms and marketing operations for Coca-Cola.

The state's new governor has named a Federal Reserve veteran to take over an administrative role overseeing the IT agency. The incoming administration has called for more focus on cybersecurity and ransomware attacks.

The nonprofit CFES (College for Every Student) Brilliant Pathways program will offer sessions this month about essential skills in children, understanding pathways to careers, finding the right school, and financial aid.

As the popularity of tech-related degrees and training programs has yet to fill the growing need for IT talent, some career professionals share non-academic qualifications and experience that helped them succeed.

Columbia State Community College is preparing 10- or 12-week programs in software development, programming and user-centered design, in partnership with Upright Education, to bring more rural students into the tech fold.

Gov. Mark Gordon has appointed former Alaska CIO Bill Vajda to lead Wyoming's IT efforts within the Department of Enterprise Technology Services. Vajda replaces Interim Director Timothy Sheehan.

The Department of General Services, which manages about 14.4 million square feet of leased office space for the state, has relinquished or is in the process of relinquishing about 767,000 square feet of space.

Ivy Tech Community College’s Anderson campus recently certified its first cohort of students in smart manufacturing and digital integration, having updated its mechatronics lab and required faculty to learn new skills.

Earlier this week, Florida CIO James Grant named Jeremy Rodgers chief information security officer of the Florida Digital Service. Rodgers brings 20-plus years of industry experience to the role.

After five years of leading improvements to resident, business and visitor digital experience for the city and county of San Francisco, Carrie Bishop has announced plans to depart from the position March 4.

Tisch told colleagues she would keep serving the city under the Adams administration. Her departure comes as the city reportedly plans to reorganize its IT agencies and follows just weeks after CTO John Paul Farmer’s exit.

The shift to remote work has meant tools once pitched as “reasonable accommodations” for people with disabilities are now mainstream. That opens up a previously underutilized hiring group for state and local government.

Shah took up the mantle in late November 2021, becoming the city’s first full-time CISO since 2018. His background includes cybersecurity and IT security roles in employee management solutions and health-care technology sectors.

New York City CTO John Paul Farmer has announced his departure from the position. Mayor-elect Eric Adams, who takes office in January, has named NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Information Technology Matt Fraser to the role.