L.A. County Officials Offer Glimpse Behind IT Curtain

HACIENDA HEIGHTS, Calif. — Technology officials from three departments within Los Angeles County government have offered an inside look at their IT strategies for the coming years.

The hourslong discussion was part of an Industry Insider — California member briefing Tuesday morning in Southern California with IT leaders from the departments of Public Social Services (DPSS), Internal Services (ISD) and Probation.

One key takeaway from the briefing included the confluence of financial stressors for the regional government, which include the impacts of a massive $4 billion settlement, costs and lost revenues associated with recent wildfires, and shifting federal and state funding challenges.

Another important theme from the event centered on the tactics vendors use to engage in early sales conversations. Probation Department Deputy CIO Vijay Panati and DPSS CIO Laura Chavez urged attendees to know their targets’ business and build up credibility before making a pitch.

Panati added that the concerns sales teams have about making sales goals are lost on county departments, and successful vendors often build long-term relationships rather than chasing larger one-off deals.

Officials from all three departments stressed the need for vendor partners to come to the table with solutions that add immediate value, especially where workflow efficiency and operational improvements are concerned.

The areas of most interest to the three departments are:

• Digital transformation/legacy modernization
• Process and workflow improvement
• Compliance auditing and monitoring
• Measured AI implementation

Less of a focus, surprisingly, was the collective call for “innovation,” with the IT leaders instead wanting tech that works toward their needs amid ever-tightening budgets. Each underscored the importance of careful fund management above new technologies.

Vendors with AI solutions should know the technology is subject to an enhanced vetting process through the county’s AI governance board, said ISD Acting Deputy General Manager Vinnie Chin. While the appetite to embrace AI for administrative and operational needs exists, labor unions have voiced concern about the impacts to their members, prompting a cautious and measured approach to its implementation.

Similarly, any vendor not registered through the county’s procurement portal should do so before trying to make sales inroads with any department, she noted. That process can take as long as two months to complete verification.

Stay tuned for deeper coverage of the event in the coming days.