Arkansas IT department hires new deputy CTO
Arkansas’ information technology shop is adding a new deputy chief technology officer to its staff roster.
The Arkansas Department of Information Systems announced the hire of Yessica Jones as the department’s deputy director and deputy CTO Tuesday. Most recently, Jones served as the Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s outreach liaison to the Hispanic community, according to a release from the department.
In the new role, Jones will oversee the department’s fiscal division and will be responsible for ensuring agency compliance with state and federal laws. In addition, Jones will oversee the enterprise architecture division, which encompasses the project management, quality management and human resources departments. Agency staff responsible for legislative policy will also report to the deputy director, DIS Public Information Manager Janet Wilson told StateScoop in an email.
Jones “brings a wealth of IT knowledge and talent to the table,” Arkansas CTO and DIS Director Mark Myers told StateScoop in an emailed statement. “She will lead the divisions and departments under her responsibility in a manner that will instill confidence and trust from our employees.”
While she worked for Hutchinson, Jones also served as an assistant professor of management information systems at Harding University. Prior to state service, Jones was a solutions developer for enterprise data company Acxiom and a database developer for oil company Pennzoil.
“I appreciate the opportunity the Hutchinson administration has given me,” Jones said in a statement. “I have seen the progress and direction that DIS is taking. I look forward to helping the agency continue to be an example of an efficient organization.”
Jones replaces Herschel Cleveland, a former speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives and the department’s previous deputy director who retired last June.
