Pennsylvania appoints Comcast executive as new CIO

Pennsylvania Secretary of Administration Neil Weaver on Monday announced that Amaya Capellan, a vice president at Comcast, was appointed as the state’s new chief information officer and deputy secretary for information technology.

Capellan replaces Patti Chapman, who’d been serving as interim CIO since John MacMillan stepped down last November just before former Gov. Tom Wolf was termed out of office. Gov. Josh Shapiro appointed Capellan as the top official at the Office for Information Technology where she’ll oversee enterprisewide technology initiatives and the other typical host of CIO duties, but also help advance the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience, or CODE PA, a team Shapiro created last April to modernize the state’s services.

She starts July 24.

“I look forward to collaborating across our customer agencies, the Governor’s Office, CODE PA, and the tech community to transform the technology systems that support the Commonwealth’s operations and deliver exceptional digital services for the people of Pennsylvania,” Capellan said in a press release.

Inside Comcast’s technology, product and experience unit, Capellan is vice president of product management. Among her credits, she oversaw the launch of the telecom giant’s Xfinity App and helped launch Xfinity Mobile, its wireless service, according to the state’s announcement. Weaver said this private-sector experience will be an asset for the state as it seeks to transform its own digital services.

“Amaya is a proven leader with an impressive track record of digital transformation throughout her career,” Weaver said in the release. “Her breadth of experience delivering results in the private sector will help us advance the Shapiro Administration’s priorities for digital transformation and customer service, and further solidify Pennsylvania’s place as a leader among states in information technology.”

Before Comcast, Capellan was an associate with the professional services firm Booz & Company and a project manager with the ad agency FCB Global.