Pardoe was tapped to serve as acting CIO in October following the departure of the state’s former CIO Amaya Capellán. She was subsequently named state CIO and deputy secretary for information technology that same month. Capellán had been in the position since 2023, and a focus on customer experience drove her approach to state IT work.
“This week, leadership and I agreed that this was the right time for a transition,” Capellán wrote in a LinkedIn post announcing her departure. The CIO role operates within the Office of Administration’s Office for Information Technology.
Pardoe was previously the inaugural executive director of the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience (CODE PA), a position she had held since May 2023. Under her leadership, the state implemented numerous CODE PA digital products, including a digital system enabling residents and businesses to get refunds on permitting processes that take more time than is standard.
Another significant undertaking, the redesign of pa.gov, unified more than 70 separate state websites into one destination. The project raised the website’s accessibility score from 37 percent to 95 percent. Pardoe was recognized by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers in October for her digital services leadership, based on her work with CODE PA.
CODE PA is now being led by Sara Hall, who has been serving as acting executive director since October. Before this, she served as senior product manager for pa.gov, and prior to joining state government, she established the city of Philadelphia’s Digital Services team within its Office of Innovation and Technology. Hall is leading CODE PA’s product management efforts.
CODE PA’s former head of operations and procurements, Sarah Kinter, is now serving as acting chief of staff to the CIO.
The state’s technology leadership has seen other changes since Capellán's October departure, when former Chief Technology Officer Brian Andrews also stepped down.
James Sipe was appointed acting executive deputy chief information officer in October, a role in which he is responsible for the planning, implementation and oversight of enterprise security, network, infrastructure and related technology services. He had served as the state's CISO since November 2023.
Andy Ritter has taken over statewide cybersecurity initiatives as acting CISO, after formerly serving as deputy CISO.
State officials were not immediately available to respond to a request for comment.
