Maryland selects chief data officer, platform services chief
Maryland’s Department of Information Technology announced on Wednesday it has filled two newly created positions on its senior leadership team: chief data officer and deputy chief technology officer of platform services.
Natalie Evans Harris, a former senior policy adviser in the Barack Obama and Joe Biden administrations, was named as the state’s chief data officer. Harris most recently served as the founding executive director at the Black Wealth Data Center, a Washington D.C. nonprofit that catalogs wealth disparities.
As Maryland’s chief data officer, Harris is tasked with creating and implementing a strategic data architecture and overseeing data services.
“I am thrilled to have this opportunity to harness the power of data to innovate, streamline, and increase efficiencies across Maryland’s government,” Harris said in a news release. “As a 20-year resident, I am eager to dive in and demonstrate the critical role of data in shaping our future and empowering individuals and organizations to make informed decisions in pursuit of data-driven excellence.”
The technology agency named Jason Silva, the Maryland Department of Transportation’s deputy chief information officer, as its deputy CTO of platform services. According to his LinkedIn profile, he spent more than 15 years with the technology services firm Sidus Group and for many years led his own consulting practice.
The new hires follow Maryland CIO Katie Savage’s announcement last year that the state would expand its team and create a new digital experience office.
“Natalie is a proven leader who will advance the State’s data modernization efforts, from platform and governance strategies to preparing our data to realize the potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning,” Savage said in the news release. “With Jason’s extensive experience in State and private sectors, DoIT will launch a Platform Services group, developing and defining the State’s enterprise platform strategy for supporting cyber-managed services, collaboration tools, identity and access management, payments, and more across the agencies we serve.”
