As part of Industry Insider — Texas’ ongoing efforts to educate readers on state and local government, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Darrell Earwood is the chief information officer for Nueces County, where he has served for three years.
Earwood holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Southern Mississippi and a master’s degree in education administration from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
Industry Insider — Texas: As the CIO for your organization, how do you describe your role? How have the role and responsibilities changed in recent years?
Earwood: The role of a CIO is about being a good facilitator of information technology implementation efforts, while adequately managing budgets associated with this process. Implementation efforts involve network infrastructure, data center virtualization, local applications, cloud-based applications, a variety of end-user devices and all the cybersecurity components surrounding each of these areas.
Rounding out skill requirements for the CIO role is the ability to hire fully qualified candidates for each of the varying positions that are necessary to fulfill implementation, maintenance and problem resolution within the broad scope of hardware and software that comprises the information technology utilized by the organization.
IITX: In your tenure in this position, which project or achievement are you most proud of?
Earwood: For the three years since filling the CIO position, one specific achievement that far exceeds all others is the technology infrastructure-cybersecurity refresh project. The Information Technology Department received a $2.5 million grant allocation to replace all network devices and the virtualized data center, as well as adding and improving cybersecurity components across all areas. Bid specifications had to be compiled and formulated into something that could be presented for the various product and service providers to bid on, a formal selection process was followed inclusive of many demonstrations, and the department is currently undergoing the staging out of all the new firewalls, switches, access points, virtualized data center and cybersecurity components. We came in $500,000 below budget.
IITX: What big initiatives or projects are coming up? What sorts of developing opportunities and RFPs should we be watching for in the next six to 12 months?
Earwood: For the immediate future, the department will focus on application automation and workflow efficiencies, more thorough and updated controls and policies to be approved by the Commissioners Court, another annual refresh of PCs and laptops out of warranty, improvements of audiovisual installations, expanded and improved website presence and assembly of a security operations center with security information and event management.
A couple of bigger initiatives, which must begin now, will be a migration plan and bid process for case and jail management systems and an effort will be underway to create a network of Internet access capability throughout rural areas of the county.
IITX: How do you define "digital transformation"? How far along is your organization in that process, and how will you know when it's finished?
Earwood: Digital transformation is about the presence and accessibility of digital technology and transforming business processes into workflow processes within this technology. Let the digital systems do all the work, and make sure everyone can get connected. Nueces County is good in some areas but growing in others. We can know when we’re in pretty good shape, but never should we feel finished. Needs and technology will continually evolve, thus so will transformation efforts.
IITX: How often do you update your organization’s enterprise catalog?
Earwood: The county operates with a $140 million-plus budget, while the Information Technology Department is allocated around $4.5 million to cover operations and a staff of 17 qualified professionals.
IITX: What do you read to stay abreast of developments in the government technology/SLED sector?
Earwood: I read up on federal and state legislative changes that affect operations; product and service benchmarks, ratings and measurements; acquisition activities and their positive or negative effects; technology innovations, evolutions and obsoletions; cybersecurity breaches, evolving threats and protective solutions; and best practices in all technology areas.
IITX: What do you think is the greatest technology challenge in Texas?
Earwood: Texas is run by state and county elected officials but operationally managed by appointed or hired personnel. Many of the elected officials never really get where they need to be with knowing and understanding the operational aspects of the respective entity. When technology is factored in, things get worse. Through the election process, mandatory training and personal initiative, we need to ensure that the landscape of elected officials is evolving toward a more savvy elected body and for that to have a positive impact on the direction the state and counties are going in relative to technology inclusion for efficiency and decision-making.
IITX: What advice would you give to someone who would like to lead an IT department?
Earwood: My advice to up-and-coming IT leaders is to not get too hasty for the reasons of knowing that you have been adequately immersed in all the primary areas of information technology implementation and support, as you will be making business-affecting and cost-related decisions on a regular basis, and you will be giving up the ability to spend much of any time working directly hands-on with technical projects and tasks.
IITX: If you could change one thing about IT procurement, what would it be?
Earwood: Procurement would be much more pleasant without the government’s purchasing mandates, whereby I could avoid resellers and work directly with providers. Unfortunately, we are stuck with this arrangement because of the conflict of interest and favoritisms that so many commit. While we want to promote fairness and cost-control, these benefits get lost when fairness isn’t accurately measured due to vendors’ products and services not being reasonably comparable, or in certain instances where a direct vendor purchase is at a lower cost than a reseller with their price markup.
IITX: How do you prefer to be contacted by vendors, including via social media such as LinkedIn?
Earwood: I prefer not to be directly contacted by vendors for a sales pitch, as opposed to them simply sending me information on what products and/or services they provide. How much and what kind of convincing elaboration they provide would need to correlate with the amount of vendor saturation that exists within their respective market. We’re in a world now where everyone wants to do everything, either with in-house development or through acquisition. In any case, as mentioned above, I’ll do my homework. My preference for vendors providing information is email.
IITX: How might vendors best educate themselves before meeting with you?
Earwood: Vendors need to know enough about county government in Texas to realize whether or not their product or service is a fit. They need to expect, in this day and age, that whatever they’re selling, the organization probably already has some form of it in operation. So they need to be able to convince us to switch, but once again, I’ll do my homework, and they need to know that. Financially, most changes, enhancements and additions will only occur on a fiscal boundary. On a final note, vendors should not assume that all government IT leaders are ill-suited for the position and constantly struggling. Many of us come very qualified.
IITX: What professional or affinity groups do you belong to? Do you volunteer and would you like to share that experience with readers?
Earwood: Groups I like being involved in are the national and Texas county associations, government and military cybersecurity agencies, Texas Conference of Urban Counties, Coastal Bend Council of Governments and general networking with peers. Involvement with Government Technology is something new I’m checking out. Volunteering is usually someone else grabbing me to help out with some function they have going on. Between home and work life, there’s not much time left for anything else.
IITX: What conferences do you attend?
Earwood: Conferences are a rare event for me, because they’re always too far away and expensive for what I get out of them. They have to be close to home, not too broad and completely technical.
IITX: What do you do to unplug in your downtime?
Earwood: Downtime is getting into the great outdoors with family, friends and pets; fishing and other water sports; biking; exercising; movies and concerts; growing and nurturing a vast amount of plants; and sometimes just sitting and thinking.
Nueces County CIO Talks Life in County Operations
