State of Technology - California Industry Forum 2024 Banner

Overview

State of Technology – California Industry Forum 2024 is the premier industry event focused on gov tech in the State of California. This half-day event brought together Center for Digital Government market analysts and key government leaders to unveil their forecasts on future initiatives impacting IT across the state. Designed for sales and marketing leaders, the Forum provided insights to help turbocharge business strategies and validate sales and marketing activities. Attendees had the opportunity to:

  • Get exclusive insights from the state CIO and government tech leaders about the hottest opportunities, emerging trends and groundbreaking initiatives shaping California’s gov tech market.
  • Gain in-depth knowledge on the state’s IT priorities and plans based on the freshly released 2025 budget.
  • Take a deep dive into the technology trends disrupting the status quo and revolutionizing how California’s government serves the public.
  • Get insights into the driving forces behind government IT spending.
  • Network with fellow industry leaders, share ideas and forge partnerships.

 

A message from our Keynote Speaker

Speakers

Liana Bailey-Crimmins

Liana Bailey-Crimmins

State Chief Information Officer and Director, Department of Technology, State of California

Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Liana Bailey-Crimmins state CIO and director of CDT in June 2022. Director Bailey-Crimmins, who has been serving as state chief technology officer and CDT’s deputy director of the Office of Technology Services since early 2021, has more than 30 years of state government technology experience.
In these pivotal roles, she is tasked with improving technology performance as an investment in California’s future and advises the governor on the strategic management of the state’s technology resources. She provides the administration with best approaches to implement state technology-related strategic plans, policies, standards, and enterprise architecture.  She is also working to close the state’s digital divide as chair of the California Broadband Council and Middle-Mile Broadband Advisory Committee.
Director Bailey-Crimmins’ public service includes executive positions as chief information security officer at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, where she led and oversaw the team responsible for protecting the private data of nearly 2 million CalPERS members and a $400 billion investment portfolio. She also served as CalPERS’ chief health director and its chief information officer. Before joining CalPERS, she was the information technology director and CIO of California Correctional Health Care Services and project director of the California Information Technology Infrastructure Project.

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Corey Bruins

Corey Bruins

National Conference Director, Government Technology

As National Conference Director for Government Technology magazine, Corey produces, manages, and emcees government IT conferences throughout the country.
With over a decade of experience in event planning and operations, Corey has a strong track record of success in producing transformational events, conferences, experiential marketing activations, and trade shows. He believes in an audience-first approach that considers how people will experience their events. He has a passion for creating transformational experiences that go beyond the typical.

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Mike Driessen

Mike Driessen

Vice President, Government Technology

Mike Driessen is a Vice President for Government Technology and the Publisher for Industry Insider.  He is responsible for managing the strategy and operations for all recurring revenue services including GovTech Industry Navigator, a market and sales intelligence tool for private-sector SLED teams, and GovTech Industry Insider which provides daily news and insights into gov tech markets.   
Mike brings over 30 years of experience in IT consulting and systems integration with firms like Accenture, Grant Thornton and Hitachi Consulting.  His experience covers sales and marketing leadership, advising on digital strategies, and managing enterprise application alliances and implementations.  He has managed both large global teams and led start-ups. Mike lives in Los Angeles, although he grew up in the Midwest, and graduated from Marquette University with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Business Administration.

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Marcie Kahbody

Marcie Kahbody

Agency Information Officer, California State Transportation (CalSTA) and Chief Information Officer, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)

Marcie Kahbody currently serves as the Agency Chief Information Officer (AIO) for the California Transportation Agency (CalSTA). In this capacity, Marcie oversees information technology (IT) responsibilities for all of CalSTA’s Boards, Offices, Commissions, and Departments (including DMV, Caltrans, CHP, High Speed Rail, and others). With over 31 years of public sector experience in IT, Marcie possesses a record of proven outcomes as a collaborative leader, directing highly technical teams and successfully implementing enterprise transformation initiatives and programs. Marcie focuses on fostering collaboration, building effective teams, encouraging two-way communication, and providing mentorship. She believes in the strength of diversity, building relationships, finding innovative approaches to updating policies, and is passionate about cultivating up and coming leaders. Marcie believes that success begins with a People First foundation and has championed it throughout her career.

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Dave Jenkins

Dave Jenkins

Chief Information Officer, California Highway Patrol

Chief Dave Jenkins has served the California Highway Patrol (CHP) for 28 years, during which he has served in a diversity of roles. As an officer, Dave worked in several areas of California, including the desert, Bay Area, Central Valley and Sierra Nevada Foothills. During this time, Dave served as the local command representative for the California Association of Highway Patrolmen, working with the Department to build strong and effective employee-employer relations. After twelve years as a road patrol officer, Dave promoted to sergeant, where he served as a supervisor in three commands, including scenic South Lake Tahoe. Dave then promoted to lieutenant, where he served as the Administrative Assistant to the Assistant Commissioner, Field, and in the Internal Affairs Section before being selected as commander of the Gold Run Area. Dave promoted to captain in 2016 and was selected as commander of the Collision Investigation Unit (CIU), before promoting to Assistant Chief within Enforcement and Planning Division in 2020. In 2024, he promoted to Chief of the CHP Information Management Division, overseeing five commands and assuming the role of Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the CHP.
Chief Jenkins is excited for the opportunity to work with Information Technology and public safety communication professionals and is committed to incorporating innovative technologies to enhance public safety.

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Jeffery Marino

Jeffery Marino

Director, Office of Data and Innovation, State of California

Jeffery currently serves as the Director at the California Office of Data and Innovation. He was appointed by Governor Newsom to this role in October 2022 after serving as ODI’s Deputy Director of Service Innovation. He began his work in state service as a volunteer, leading the Governor’s Data Insights Working Group as part of the administration’s COVID response team, eventually joining ODI permanently as the Insights Program Manager.
Jeffery’s work at ODI is focused on helping state departments develop innovative ways to engage with underserved communities and improve the customer experience for all Californians when interacting with their government. He played a pivotal role in developing a direct engagement and digital analytics model that increased the equitable delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine, and his team has shipped many examples of user-centered government services, including most recently with the launch of abortion.ca.gov.
Prior to answering the call to public service, Jeffery served under two chief economists, developing data communications and thought leadership programs at Redfin and ZipRecruiter. In addition to his leadership roles in recruitment-tech and prop-tech, Jeffery is also a seasoned data journalist, known for his coverage of the housing crisis and the socio-economic legacy of the Great Recession. His work has appeared in the LA Times, Business Insider, and FastCompany, among other notable publications.
A proud graduate of two California state universities, Jeffery has a Master’s degree in critical theory and comparative literature from University of California, Santa Cruz. He lives in Sacramento with his wife and his young son.

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Prashant Mittal

Prashant Mittal

Chief Information Officer, Department of Motor Vehicles, State of California  

Prashant Mittal was appointed Chief Information Officer in April 2022. He oversees a dynamic team of technology professionals and provides strategic leadership and direction across diverse domains that include Enterprise Applications, Technology Infrastructure, Information Security, Enterprise Modernization, IT Governance, and Project Management & Oversight.
Prashant offers the DMV 25 years of seasoned senior-level leadership experience combined with extensive technical knowledge in managing and delivering enterprise technology solutions to meet evolving business needs across various business verticals, such as healthcare, gaming, finance, pension, point-of-sale, and services in both public and private sectors.
Before joining the DMV, Prashant worked at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) and held various positions, including Director of the Pension Solution Project and the Director of Enterprise IT Solutions and Innovations.
Prashant holds a Masters in Computer Applications and a Bachelor of Science in Physics, Mathematics, and Statistics.

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Joseph Morris

Joseph Morris

Chief Innovation Officer, Center for Digital Government

Joseph Morris is the chief innovation officer for the Center for Digital Government and a national keynote speaker on issues, trends and drivers impacting state and local government and education. He has authored publications and reports on funding streams, technology investment areas and public-sector priorities, and has led roundtables, projects and initiatives focused on issues within the public sector. Joe has conducted state and local government research with e.Republic since 2007 and knows the ins and outs of government on all levels. He received his Bachelor of Arts in government and international relations from the California State University, Sacramento.

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Mike Nguyen

Mike Nguyen

Chief Technology Officer, Caltrans

Mike Nguyen serves as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). As CTO, Mike is responsibility for IT strategies and operations including planning and implementing innovative and sustainable IT solutions to support Caltrans and CalSTA’s mission, goals and objectives. His leadership responsibilities include all aspects of IT policies, standards, processes and procedures governing the design, development, implementation, maintenance, and operations of Caltrans IT infrastructure, and critical services that support Caltrans business operations.
Prior to working at Caltrans, Mike served as Director of CalPERS Data Center, and has held various IT leadership roles at the Department of Health Care Services, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the Department of General Services.
Mike a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from California State University, Sacramento.

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Rosanna Nguyen

Rosanna Nguyen

Chief, Information Technology Consulting Unit, Department of Finance, State of California  

Rosanna Nguyen is the Chief of the Information Technology Consulting Unit for the Department of Finance. She leads a team responsible for performing fiscal oversight of IT projects and evaluating fiscal and operational impacts for IT initiatives as part of the state’s annual budget process. Prior to this role, Rosanna served as a Fiscal Oversight Manager for the Department of Finance from 2016-2019. She has also held IT management and analyst positions working in the areas of Project Management, Project Oversight and Enterprise Strategic Planning at the Franchise Tax Board in her 26 years of state government service.

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Jonathan Porat

Jonathan Porat

State Chief Technology Officer, Department of Technology, State of California

Porat plays a crucial role in California's identity and access management strategy, ensuring that eligible residents can seamlessly access essential government services. Through strategic collaborations with government entities and industry leaders, he has established a secure, interoperable, and flexible system that can meet both current and future needs.
One of his significant contributions is the expansion of digital government services in California. He was responsible for the statewide Digital Strategy that provides a comprehensive framework for all levels of California government and education systems to innovate using technology to improve experiences and services for residents. It serves as a blueprint that will shape the digital future of the state, leveraging innovative technology and human-centric design to make public services more accessible, efficient, and responsive to the needs of Californians. Porat's leadership ensures the seamless integration of disparate data sources, creating a scalable visualization architecture tailored to each unique requirement.
As the State Chief Technology Officer, he advocates for simplifying service usage, improving accessibility, and fostering collaboration across departments and governments. This commitment to innovation is evident not only in the state’s digital strategy, but also in the introduction of the State Web Template, a collaborative open-source initiative aimed at enhancing statewide website design. Remarkably, this template has been adopted by 200 out of 236 executive-branch entities, achieving an impressive average accessibility score of 95%.
Under Jonathan Porat’s leadership, California is swiftly adopting and embracing innovative technologies that are easily replicable for state partners, and user-friendly for residents. His dedication to progress continues to drive California's government technology sector forward, making it a model for other states to follow.

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Ron Robinette

Ron Robinette

Deputy Secretary, Technology and Innovation Agency Information Officer, Government Operations Agency, State of California 

Prior to joining the Government Operations Agency, Mr. Robinette, worked at the California Department of Technology where he was responsible for creating the Technology Stabilization Service and Technology Modernization Service.
With a career in public service spanning more than 25 years, he has assisted in the state response to emergency situations such as H1N1, the Angora fire, and COVID-19. From 2014-2017, he served as CIO at the California Department of Community Services and Development, earning CIO of the Year in 2016. His state service includes roles at the California Department of Public Health and the State Water Resources Control Board. Over the years, his technology teams received numerous state and national awards.
Ron received a Bachelor of Science in Business with a concentration in Management Information Systems from Sacramento State University and a Master of Science in Management from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

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Angela Shell

Angela Shell

State Chief Procurement Officer and Deputy Director of the Procurement Division, Department of General Services, State of California

Angela Shell was appointed Deputy Director of the Procurement Division at the Department of General Services and Chief Procurement Officer for the State of California on Nov. 1, 2017. In her current role, Angela is responsible for overseeing the State’s purchase of goods and services vital to state department operations that serve the needs of California. This includes developing and awarding statewide leveraged procurement agreements, delegating purchasing authority, developing statewide policy and training, identifying sustainable procurement methods and products, and certifying Small and Disabled Veteran Business enterprises.
Angela has more than 26 years of service to the State of California including 19 years at the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) from 1998 to 2017 serving as the Division Chief and Chief Procurement Officer for the Division of Procurement and Contracts, Assistant Director for the Office of Business and Economic Opportunity, Chief of the Office of Construction Support, and Labor Compliance Program Manager.
Angela has also worked for the Contractors State License Board and Department of Insurance and has extensive experience working with the small and disabled veteran business communities, state and federal government stakeholders and vendor community representatives to develop innovative solutions to California’s contracting and procurement needs.

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Crystal Taylor

Crystal Taylor

Chief Information Officer & Deputy Director, Enterprise Technology Services, California Department of Health Care Services

Appointed in March 2024, Crystal Taylor serves as Deputy Director of Enterprise Technology Services & Chief Information Officer (CIO) at DHCS. Prior to this appointment, Crystal served as Chief IT Strategy Officer & Chief of the Information Technology Strategy Services Division within Enterprise Technology Services at DHCS. In that role, Crystal was a driving force in implementing strategic changes, enhancing programmatic efficiency, and delivering exceptional business value, exemplifying leadership in public sector technology management. Notably, she led the successful development and execution of enterprise-level product modernization and architecture strategy, managed a vast portfolio of projects, and delivered comprehensive IT administrative services. Her efforts were central to DHCS's commitment to strategically modernize its technological infrastructure and services in support of the programmatic needs of the enterprise.
More broadly, Crystal's career spans over 18 years with the State of California, marked by various impactful, high-visibility leadership positions and a track record of successfully managing complex strategic initiatives. Crystal has excelled as Division Chief of DHCS's Information Technology Strategy Services and as Chief of the Product Branch within DHCS's Medi-Cal Enterprise Systems Modernization Division, served as Assistant Director and Acting Deputy Director of the California Project Management Office at the California Department of Technology, Information Technology Manager for Franchise Tax Board’s Systems Engineering and Access Management Section within Technology Services Division, Budget Officer for the Franchise Tax Board’s entire fiscal portfolio, and Fiscal & Policy Analyst for the California Legislative Analyst’s Office. In these roles, Crystal directed state project portfolios, developed and implemented project management processes and tools, managed technology operations, modernized technology systems, testified to the Executive Branch and Legislative Committees on state programs and budgets, and oversaw the day-to-day operations of state offices. Crystal holds a Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics from Lafayette College and two Master's Degrees from Princeton University in Public Affairs and Urban & Regional Planning.

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Jefferson Willoughby

Jefferson Willoughby

Chief Information Officer, California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board

Jefferson Willoughby serves as the Chief Information Officer at the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board. His tenure has benefitted from over 25 years of technical experience in network, data center and managed service development prior to joining California State government. Under his leadership, CUIAB recently undertook and launched a major modernization project for appeals processing.  Jefferson received his Master’s degree from Sacramento State University and has served as both class coach and advisor for the IT Leadership Academy. 

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Agenda

Monday, September 16

12:30 pm Pacific

Registration Check-in and Networking

Atrium (Exhibit Area)

1:00 pm Pacific

Welcome and Opening Remarks

Grand Ballroom

Liana Bailey-Crimmins, State Chief Information Officer and Director, Department of Technology, State of California

1:15 pm Pacific

Technology Adoption and Future Outlook in California State Government

Grand Ballroom

Join us for an insightful session where we unveil the findings of our comprehensive survey exploring the future of technology adoption and use in California state government. This survey, which gathered insights from senior-level government technologists, leadership, and key industry partners, provides a forward-looking outlook on the trends, challenges, and opportunities that lie ahead. Discover what the experts are saying about the evolving landscape of technology in government and gain valuable knowledge to inform your strategic decisions and initiatives. Don’t miss this opportunity to stay ahead of the curve and be part of the conversation shaping the future of technology in the Golden State.

Introduction by: Samantha Thibault, Executive Sales Director, AT&T

Joseph Morris, Chief Innovation Officer, Center for Digital Government

1:45 pm Pacific

AI in California Government

Grand Ballroom

AI holds great potential for state and local government and has become one of the hottest topics throughout government. This discussion will highlight how AI is being deployed across state government, insights into the biggest impacts and benefits envisioned from AI deployment, and how the state is coordinating AI efforts and providing guidance.

Introduction by: William Faulconer, Sr. Account Executive, Juniper Networks

Moderator: Joseph Morris, Chief Innovation Officer, Center for Digital Government

Jeffery Marino, Director, California Office of Data and Innovation

Jonathan Porat, State Chief Technology Officer, California Department of Technology

Ron Robinette, Deputy Secretary, Technology and Innovation Agency Information Officer, California Government Operations Agency

Angela Shell, State Chief Procurement Officer and Deputy Director of the Procurement Division, California Department of General Services

2:30 pm Pacific

Networking Break

Atrium (Exhibit Area)

3:00 pm Pacific

The Future of IT in California Transportation

Grand Ballroom

Technology is rapidly transforming all aspects of transportation. This panel will discuss how IT innovation will impact California transportation services, discuss future initiatives, and detail how industry partners can support these initiatives. The California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) and its eight state organizations support the movement of people and goods throughout the state and collectively comprise more than 42,000 employees.

Introduction by: Chul Yim, Sales Director, Socure

Moderator: Mike Driessen, Vice President, Industry Insider – California

Marcie Kahbody, Agency Information Officer, California State Transportation (CalSTA) and Chief Information Officer, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)

Dave Jenkins, Chief Information Officer, California Highway Patrol

Prashant Mittal, Chief Information Officer, Department of Motor Vehicles

Mike Nguyen, Chief Technology Officer, California Department of Transportation

3:45 pm Pacific

IT Leadership Insights from Strategy to Execution

Grand Ballroom

Hear insights from state IT leaders on topics ranging from strategy to execution and IT’s role in impacting the future of government services. Learn how IT projects – including innovation and POCs - are planned, budgeted and funded, and lessons learned regarding collaboration with industry partners, followed by audience Q and A.

Introduction by: Shawchin Chiu, Managing Client Partner, State of California, IBM Consulting

Moderator: Corey Bruins, Conference Director of California Programs and Events, Government Technology

Rosanna Nguyen, Chief, Information Technology Consulting Unit, Department of Finance

Crystal Taylor, Chief Information Officer & Deputy Director, Enterprise Technology Services, California Department of Health Care Services

Jefferson Willoughby, Chief Information Officer, California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board

4:30 pm Pacific

Networking Reception

Atrium (Exhibit Area)

5:30 pm Pacific

End of Event

Event times, agenda, and speakers are subject to change.

Hilton Sacramento Arden West

2200 Harvard Street
Sacramento, CA 95815

Get Directions To
Hilton Sacramento Arden West

Registration Information / Contact Us

*To learn more about becoming an Industry Insider – California member
visit this page or reach out to our team at hello@industryinsider.govtech.com

Venue

Hilton Sacramento Arden West

2200 Harvard Street
Sacramento, CA 95815