Tong to NASCIO: California Is in Transformation

State CIO Amy Tong told her peers from across the nation Tuesday that California's digital government is in the midst of a digital transformation.

Tong spoke on a panel at the annual conference of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers, along with Minnesota CIO Johanna Clyborne, NASCIO Executive Director Doug Robinson and Grant Thornton principal Graeme Finley. They discussed their insights into a NASCIO report summarizing the findings of its 2018 State CIO Survey. 

Top technology officials from all 50 states weighed in on the report, titled State CIO as Communicator: The Evolving Nature of Technology and Leadership. With next month's elections likely to usher in many new faces to state CIO offices, NASCIO positioned the document as guidance for the next class of state technology leaders.

As the document’s title suggests, the survey offers insights on the changing way CIOs view their role. Communication skills easily outranked all other abilities needed for the job, signaling the end of the era that saw CIOs laser-focused on overseeing sound technology infrastructure. 

As to California’s journey, Tong described the state as in the process of transforming.

"Digital government is less about what tech is being made available to citizens or residents in California,” she said. “It’s really about accessibility,” noting that the state is moving toward an approach that is user-centered, delivering services in the way that is the most convenient to people. And that requires a lot of work on back-of-the-house systems and processes.

In California, a governance body meets monthly to ensure that efforts to transform are well-coordinated.

“Digital government is really about the business process transformation behind the scene,” Tong added. 

Other skills needed by successful CIOs include strategic thinking and relationship-building — traits underlined by many tech leaders interviewed over the course of the conference.

This report is excerpted from Government Technology's full story.