Workforce and People

The country's longest-serving state IT leader, Chief Information Officer Calvin Rhodes announced he was leaving his post at the end of June after a decade heading the Georgia Technology Authority.

Kehoe has garnered acclaim for his work with the largest county in the nation since he took on the role in 2017, as well as for his previous work as CIO for King County, Wash. Now he’s making the leap to the state level.

Former Ohio agency CIO Jason Sankey brings both public- and private-sector experience to his new role as CIO for the city of Atlanta. The city’s previous CIO, Gary Brantley, stepped down in November 2020.

Jobless residents using the state's unemployment portal to claim their benefits are running into problems with the website. Hundreds reported system glitches while trying to certify on Sunday.

Evanston, Ill., CIO Luke Stowe has been appointed as the city's administrative services director, a role he had held in an interim capacity since September 2019. He will still maintain leadership of the IT department.

Now that the dust is settling after the rush to pivot to remote work for as many public-sector staff as possible, tech leaders look at what a hybrid workforce future may hold for state and local government.

North Carolina’s first-ever chief risk officer has departed for the private sector after six years in the role. Former deputy chief risk officer Rob Main will temporarily step into the role.

The country is opening back up and employers are making decisions on what the workplace model will look like. While a hybrid model seems inevitable, there are significant wins to be had by bringing the team back in.

Gov. Larry Hogan has invested $6.5 million into strategic partnerships through an employment program aimed at boosting information technology, cybersecurity and green jobs training.

Next month, West Virginia Chief Technology Officer Joshua Spence will be recognized as the state chief information officer. Spence said the title change represents a larger strategic vision for the state.

While many tech companies vocalized their support for the Black Lives Matter movement last year, little action has been taken. In fact, some companies that supported BLM have become less diverse in terms of workforce.

Hardik Bhatt has been working on public-sector sales and partnerships at Amazon Web Services for three years, but now he’s joining a Chicago-based managed services provider with a substantial government footprint.

COVID-19 proved even to skeptics that a lot of government business can be done from anywhere. So what happens to all the physical spaces that cities and states invested in to house their workforce?

Jason Clarke, chief information officer of Delaware since November 2020, explains the pandemic’s impact on state jobs, what employees’ work will look like going forward and where Delaware stands on broadband.

The executive branch wants long-term telework options to boost and diversify state employee recruitment and a new all-in-one digital platform to streamline resident services — though funding is a point of debate.

Jason Hebbe has been named as the state's CTO following the departure of Sean Crager. Hebbe brings nearly three decades of information technology experience in government and the private sector.

State agencies in Kansas must have a telework policy if they intend to continue allowing telework for their employees after June 13. Some believe telework can help agencies compete for talent with the private sector.

In a brave new world of fully remote or hybrid teams, chief information officers need to explore new ways to find talent and build work culture that supports employees and improves outcomes.