Among them was Tamecka McKay, who oversaw and completed various big-ticket modernization projects as the chief information officer of Fort Lauderdale.
Here’s a quick look at this year’s honoree:
Tamecka McKay became Fort Lauderdale’s chief information officer in August 2022, bringing technical and leadership experience from Broward County Public Schools and the town of Davie to the role. Since then, she and her team have notched some significant wins: replacing a 50-year-old ERP system, refreshing 20-year-old tech infrastructure, completing a Microsoft 365 migration and consolidating five disparate data centers.
Modernization efforts like these have improved the city’s resilience, which was tested by severe flooding in 2023 that took out the main data center. McKay and her team worked quickly to restore IT services, and therefore essential city functions.
When describing her role, McKay said she aims to be “the bridge builder” that puts technology to work in service of Ft. Lauderdale’s mission. This entails building trust with business leaders, external customers and vendors, and getting the best from her staff.
An early priority was addressing critical cybersecurity vulnerabilities, clearing the way for digital transformation projects such as the Ask FTL chatbot and the nonemergency reporting tool, FixIt FTL. Now, she’s focused on standing up good governance that keeps Ft. Lauderdale on the forefront when it comes to IT.
But McKay embraces an outward-facing role as well, looking for opportunities to have an impact among the broader population. “I’m very passionate about community service and underserved communities,” McKay said.
For example, the city has started offering cybersecurity training to the elderly to combat fraud targeting older populations. She has also set her sights on fostering more workforce development for those looking to change careers and join the tech field.
“We really have an opportunity to impact the world and improve the quality of life with technology, if only we can think and envision that and then execute it,” she said.
This story originally appeared in the Spring 2025 issue of Government Technology magazine. After this issue went to print, McKay announced her departure from Fort Lauderdale. Click here to view the full digital edition online.
