With over 31 years of experience working for Los Angeles County, Laura Chavez is currently serving as the Assistant Director and Chief Information Officer for Los Angeles County’s Department of Public Social Services (DPSS). She manages the Bureau of Technology Services (BTS), with a workforce of over 450 information technology (IT) professionals, including the department’s IT Security Office. She plays a critical role in driving innovation, efficiency, and security across one of the largest public service agencies in the nation and understands how technology can positively impact the County’s mission to serve our communities.
In 2017, Laura was appointed to the role of Chief Technology Officer for the California Statewide Automated Welfare System (CalSAWS) Project and was responsible for the successful migration of data from 57 counties to the new statewide system already being utilized by Los Angeles County. This system now supports over 70,000 county staff users, serves over 16 million customers and issues over 1.7 billion dollars in benefits a month across the State of California. This project also involved migrating the applications from on premise data centers to a cloud hosted platform and centralized the use of project hardware, software, and data services creating significant cost savings for ongoing maintenance. Laura was also the project manager for the successful development and deployment of the first public facing customer website for DPSS called YourBenefitsNow (YBN) in 2010. This revolutionized business operations, department-wide, with the ability to receive online applications and allow customers to self-serve and obtain critical information about their case.
Laura attributes her many project successes over the years to communication and collaboration. Having a clear vision and a strategy is a starting point, but she believes the key is fostering teamwork and creativity along with empowering others to communicate that same vision and creating shared goals. Pair that up with active listening and data-driven decision making and this is a great recipe for implementing successful IT projects on time and on budget.

Vinnie oversees the Information Technology Service's Customer Applications Branch (CAB), where she leads the development, support, and maintenance of over 400 applications across Los Angeles County. These include both enterprise systems used Countywide and department-specific solutions. Among these are mission-critical systems that support payroll, financial operations, and justice services. CAB functions as the primary IT service provider to 39 County departments, offering comprehensive application development, project management, and ongoing system support.
In addition to customer-facing services, Vinnie is responsible for delivering technology solutions to ISD’s internal back-office operations, enabling ISD to provide services to County departments efficiently. She ensures that all solutions are secure, reliable, and aligned with the County’s goals for innovation, customer service, and operational excellence. She also plays a key role in IT governance, process modernization, and the adoption of emerging technologies such as low-code/no-code platforms.
Vinnie began her career in Los Angeles County at the Department of Health Services (DHS), where she launched the department’s first website. Prior to joining ISD in June 2023, she spent nine years at the Los Angeles County Probation Department—five in the Infrastructure and Operations Division and four in Business Application and Data Management. Recognizing the importance of cybersecurity, she founded the Security Operations Section to oversee system patching, change control, and data protection. She established a DMZ server to support secure connectivity for roaming devices. Her accomplishments also include strengthening the department’s communication infrastructure, spearheading the installation of CCTV systems at juvenile halls and camps to enhance security protocols, and launching key applications to support critical business operations.
Vinnie holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems and a Master of Public Administration. Her broad experience, technical acumen, and leadership drive the advancement of application technologies within her branch, ensuring innovative, reliable, and high-quality solutions for the departments she serves across Los Angeles County.

Vijay Panati is the Deputy CIO for the County of Los Angeles Probation Department, the largest probation department in the country. He has been serving in this position since December 2018. He has direct oversight over Infrastructure & Operations, Business Application development, and Data management along with peripheral oversight of the Information Security office, PMO, and administrative functions of IT. In his role, he leads key strategic initiatives driving the department’s IT posture into the 21st century and developing a workforce that is prepared for future challenges.
Prior to Los Angeles County, Vijay has had successful stints in key leadership positions at Riverside County, Toyota (Motor Sales and Financial Services divisions), and the University of Southern California. This varied breadth and depth of experience in all facets of IT in various industries gives Vijay a unique perspective and expansive expertise in solving business problems that are focused on driving customer value while optimizing cost and effort. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science from the University of Southern California.