Darrell Tompkins is chief information officer of the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB), a role he has held for seven years. He is a longtime IT executive with private- and public-sector experience, most recently serving as an IT manager at TWDB from 2014 to 2016.
As an IT manager, Tompkins oversaw the agency’s security and infrastructure help desk and web administration teams, implemented a centralized computer refresh program and leveraged funding to refresh all network infrastructure hardware to include improved administrative wireless networks.
Before working in the public sector, Tompkins held IT and risk management roles with Four Seasons Hotels from 1994 to 2014. He holds a bachelor’s degree in hotel and restaurant management from the University of Houston.
Industry Insider — Texas: As CIO of your organization, how do you describe your role? How have the role and responsibilities of the CIO changed in recent years?
Tompkins: I aim to provide inspirational, innovative but sensible and effective IT leadership for the Texas Water Development Board. We strive to develop a technology strategy that meets the digital demands of the agency as efficiently and effectively as possible, and that starts with ensuring we foster strong working relationships with our business partners across the enterprise. I think the CIO role has evolved from “the person behind the curtain making everything work” into a high-profile, valued member of the leadership team that plays a critical role in the overall success of the organization, and that’s a great thing. We have an outstanding executive leadership team at TWDB, and I’m thrilled to be working with them.
Industry Insider — Texas: In your tenure in this position, which project or achievement are you most proud of?
Tompkins: I’m most proud of the culture we have established in the IT Division and the amazing team it has allowed us to build and sustain through a consistently challenging and hyper-competitive IT labor market. We are a people-first culture with a passionate focus on customer service, and that is the foundation of our success.
Industry Insider — Texas: What projects will you be looking to fund in the next biennium? Do you have exceptional requests that may be before the Legislature?
Tompkins: Data management maturity and modernization, advancement with cybersecurity technologies, legacy application modernization via SaaS and low-code/no-code platforms and digital transformation using intuitive platforms that provide automation and reporting that meets the security and statutory requirements of Texas state agencies.
Industry Insider — Texas: How do you define “digital transformation?” How far along is your organization in that process, and how will you know when it’s finished?
Tompkins: Well, I think most people in the IT profession would agree that you’re never finished. The pace of change is one of the biggest challenges that IT leaders and professionals face. I have a quote on my office wall from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that I love: “The pace of change has never been this fast, yet it will never be this slow again.” When you couple that with the staffing challenges we face in this industry, it can make you want to wave the white flag at times, but it’s also what makes IT so exciting. We are constantly looking to use modern technology solutions to keep raising the bar and will continue to do so.
Industry Insider — Texas: What is your estimated IT budget, and how many employees do you have? What is the overall budget?
Tompkins: Our annual IT operating budget is around $8 million (including labor), and we currently have 46 employees in the IT Division. I’m hopeful that our exceptional item requests will be approved in the current legislative session and that these numbers will grow in the FY 2024-2025 biennium.
Industry Insider — Texas: What do you read to stay abreast of developments in the government technology/SLED sector?
Tompkins: Government Technology’s Industry Insider, of course, is a great source of information. I also read technology news on several major news websites daily. I’m a fan of the Wall Street Journal’s CIO Journal section and eWeek and I subscribe to email alerts from different organizations like the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Industry Insider — Texas: What do you think is the greatest technology challenge in Texas?
Tompkins: Tough question. I mentioned earlier the pace of change that we deal with in IT, so that’s what I’ll go with. IT is an industry that evolves and changes rapidly, but as a government entity, we are structured to function at a slower pace. Whether you’re talking about a two-year legislative/budget cycle or lengthier procurement and hiring processes, the result is that we’re usually playing from behind, and that’s a tough spot to be in when it comes to information technology.
Industry Insider — Texas: What advice would you give to someone who would like to lead an IT department?
Tompkins: Leadership first, technology second. Lead by example and work hard to establish a people-first, customer-centric culture, and don’t ever let up. It takes time to foster a deep-rooted culture, but it doesn’t take long for it to crumble. A good, strong culture lifts everyone up and can help overcome a lot. Focus on the basics and build up from there. The impact of implementing shiny new technology solutions will be greatly diminished if your systems support team isn’t meeting service-level agreements and providing good service to customers or if you don’t have strong information security and data governance programs, policies and procedures.
Industry Insider — Texas: If you could change one thing about IT procurement, what would it be?
Tompkins: Continuing to take steps to ensure we have fast and easy access to a wide offering of technology products.
Industry Insider — Texas: How do you prefer to be contacted by vendors, including via social media such as LinkedIn?
Tompkins: Let me start by saying how much I appreciate our public-sector vendor community. They are amazing vendors and we rely on them to meet the technological demands of our customers. I prefer to establish relationships with vendors over time, at conferences, and as needed based on the happenings at our agency. To be honest, I don’t have the bandwidth to respond to the dozens of vendor outreach emails that I receive daily, and it’s challenging to accommodate a lot of intro/demo meetings. If the business need arises, I’ll follow our agency procurement policies and procedures, and the opportunity may happen. I have a recent example where I’ve had a relationship with a vendor representative for a good while, but we hadn’t done business together. We kept in touch at conferences, and she continued to let me know that they would be there if we ever needed anything. As of a couple of months ago, based on new demands and changes in our environment, we are doing business with them.
Industry Insider — Texas: How might vendors best educate themselves before meeting with you?
Tompkins: I think vendors are pretty good at using the information and resources available to get an understanding of our agency and the initiatives we are working on. One thing I will say is that our IT team places a lot of importance on providing exceptional service to our customers, and, as a result, we look for the same in the vendors we work with. Our resources are stretched thin, and we look for solutions that will make us more efficient, but we’re looking for more than just a great product. We are looking for vendors that will work hand-in-hand with us to ensure we are getting maximum value out of those products.
Industry Insider — Texas: Which of your certifications would you like to note?
Tompkins: There are so many great certifications and training programs available to IT professionals. As a state of Texas IT leader, I recommend the Executive Leadership for Information Technology Excellence (ELITE) training program offered by the Texas Department of Information Resources and the LBJ School of Public Affairs, the Certified Texas Contract Manager training offered by the Texas comptroller’s office and Information Technology Infrastructure Library training.
Industry Insider — Texas: What professional or affinity groups do you belong to? Do you volunteer, and would you like to share that experience with readers?
Tompkins: I’m currently on the advisory board for the Government Technology* Digital Government Summit and IT Leadership Forum events, have previously served on the Shared Technology Services IT Leadership Committee and Technology Solution Services solution group and recently participated in TechTables podcast events. I think volunteering is a great opportunity to network, expand your horizons and gain perspective, and would highly recommend it.
Industry Insider — Texas: What conferences do you attend?
Tompkins: I try not to miss the Texas Association of State Systems for Computing and Communications and Government Technology conferences. They are great opportunities to network with colleagues and vendors and the session topics are always relevant.
Industry Insider — Texas: What are you reading or listening to for fun? What do you do to unplug in your downtime?
Tompkins: I love spending time outdoors and with my wife and our dog. Trail running is probably my favorite form of exercise, but I love swimming, biking and yoga too. When I’m not working, there’s a good chance I’m at the beach. I’m all over the place when it comes to reading and music. Right now, I’m reading Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order by Ray Dalio. As I’m writing this, I’m listening to the Groove Armada station on Pandora.
*Government Technology and Industry Insider — Texas are both a part of e.Republic.
