California Government Efficiency and Innovation Summit 2026
Overview
Innovating Government. Strengthening California.
This Summit brings together state and local leaders, policymakers, technologists, and industry partners for a full day of high-impact conversation and collaboration. This Summit unites efficiency efforts with bold innovation, connecting emerging technologies and human-centered approaches to practical implementation. By fostering cross-sector collaboration, participants will explore ways to improve efficiency, embrace innovation, and transform ideas into real solutions that improve the lives of 40 million Californians.
Agenda
Tuesday, November 17 |
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8:30 am Pacific |
Registration and Morning Refreshments |
9:30 am Pacific |
Welcome and Opening Remarks |
9:40 am Pacific |
KeynoteCalifornia has no shortage of good ideas. The hard part is making them spread, scale, and change how government actually works. The Office of Data and Innovation Director Jeffery Marino kicks off the day with a call to bring transformation closer to home: making services easier for Californians to navigate, reducing the fragmentation that slows progress, and building stronger connections among the leaders responsible for making change happen. The opportunity is bigger than any one project or agency. It is about creating a government that learns faster, works together better, and delivers better experiences for the people it serves.
Jeffery Marino, Director, Office of Data and Innovation |
10:00 am Pacific |
The Government Operating System - Executive RoundtableCalifornia knows how to transform. The challenge is making transformation easier to repeat. A new digital service, a faster hiring process, a shared data capability, or a breakthrough built during an emergency can prove what is possible, but too often those successes remain the exception. This lively discussion delves into the operating system underneath government: the policies, processes, technology, workforce, funding, and shared services that determine whether good ideas spread or stall. What needs to change so that successful transformation becomes easier to scale across California government?
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10:45 am Pacific |
Networking Break |
11:00 am Pacific |
We ARE the Change: Turn Ideas into ActionThe right people in the room can move a problem forward. Designed for active participation, this session gathers attendees together around shared challenges facing California government. Groups will dig into a problem, identify what is getting in the way, and map out the people, decisions, partnerships, and resources needed to make progress. The goal: use the expertise in the room to develop actionable changes after the summit.
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12:15 pm Pacific |
Lunch |
1:15 pm Pacific |
We Can Make Government Easier to OperateCalifornia has shown it can move quickly when the moment demands it. During emergencies, long-standing barriers can fall away, resources align, decisions accelerate, and work that once seemed impossible gets done. The challenge is making more of that possible in normal operations. In this interactive session we examine the procurement, funding, hiring, approval, technology, and back-office processes that slow good work down, and ask which rules, structures, and ways of working we can redesign so progress is easier to sustain.
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2:00 pm Pacific |
We Will Design Government Around PeoplePeople don’t experience government one agency at a time. They are trying to find work, support a family, get licensed, access benefits, or start a business, and too often they must understand the structure of government to get what they need. Building on efforts like single sign-on and one-stop access, this session explores how California can better connect services, data, identity, and channels around real-life needs. With audience engagement throughout, we'll also discuss what employees need, from better tools and shared information to redesigned work, to deliver that experience.
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2:45 pm Pacific |
Networking Break |
3:15 pm Pacific |
Technology Helps Us Redesign the WorkAI can be a catalyst for rethinking how government work gets done from the ground up. Put the people who know the work closest to the problem, rethink the process, remove unnecessary steps, standardize how information moves, and then apply technology where it can make the biggest difference. We will explore how program and technology teams can use AI to build better ways of working, share what works across agencies, and give employees a real role in shaping the next generation of government work.
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4:00 pm Pacific |
Closing Remarks |
4:15 pm Pacific |
Networking Reception |
5:00 pm Pacific |
End of ConferenceConference times, agenda, and speakers are subject to change.
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Crocker Art Museum
216 O Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 808-7000
Crocker Art Museum
Advisory Board
Government Representatives
Jennifer Barretto
Undersecretary
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
State of California
Brenda Bridges Cruz
Director, Justice Data & Investigative Services Bureau
Department of Justice
State of California
Keali'i Bright
Undersecretary
Natural Resources Agency
State of California
Anne Crew-Renzo
Deputy Director
Office of Data and Information
State of California
Adam Dondro
Agency Information Officer
Health and Human Services Agency, Office of Systems Integration
State of California
Chaeny Emanavin
Deputy State Chief Technology Officer
Department of Technology
State of California
Nancy Farias
Director
Employment Development Department
State of California
Russ Fong
Undersecretary
GovOps
State of California
Fredrick Gomez
Agency Information Officer
Department of Food and Agriculture
State of California
Scott Gregory
Deputy Director,Technology
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
State of California
Ajay Gupta
Chief Digital Transformation Officer
Department of Motor Vehicles
State of California
Brandy Hunt
Deputy Director
Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery
State of California
Jeffery Marino
Director
Office of Data and Information
State of California
Mike Marshall
Chief Information Security Officer
Department of Technology
State of California
Subbarao Mupparaju
Director
FI$CAL
State of California
Erica Pan
Director, State Public Health Officer
Department of Public Health and Safety
State of California
Jason Piccione
Secretary
Business Consumer Services and Housing Agency
State of California
Amy Tong
Former Secretary of CA GovOPS and Senior Counselor to the Governor
Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Government
Michael Valle
Assistant Director
Department of Health Care Access and Information
State of California
Julianna Vignalats
Chief Operating Officer
Department of Social Services
State of California
Daniel Villasenor
Deputy Director, Communications
Governor's Office
State of California
Kathleen Webb
Chief Deputy Executive Director, Operations
Covered CA
Industry Representatives
Miriam Ingenito
Account Relations Director
KPMG
Michael Larcher
Solution and Sustainability Lead, North America
Engineering and Technical Operations
cBrain
Jay Nath
Account Director
OpenAI
Nathaniel Palmer
President & CEO
Infocap
Registration Information / Contact Us
Event Date: November 17, 2026
This is an invitation-only event, open to Public Sector only. For more information or to request an invitation, contact: Tabbie Pegoda
If you represent a Private Sector organization and are interested in Sponsorship Opportunities, please contact Heather Earney.
This event is open to all individuals who meet the eligibility criteria, without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, age, disability, or any other protected class. We are committed to fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment for all participants.
Contact Information
Need help registering, or have general event questions? Contact:
Tabbie Pegoda
Governing
A division of e.Republic
Phone: (916) 932-1411
E-mail: tpegoda@erepublic.com
Already a sponsor, but need a hand? Reach out to:
Mireya Gaton
Governing
A division of e.Republic
Phone:(916) 296-2617
E-Mail: mgaton@erepublic.com
Want to sponsor and stand out? Reach out to explore opportunities!
Heather Earney
Governing
A division of e.Republic
Phone: (916) 365-2308
E-mail: heather.earney@erepublic.com