Chris Cruz is the Chief Deputy Director of the California Department of Technology and the Deputy State Chief Information Officer for the State of California.
Prior to this position, Mr. Cruz served the Department of Technology as the Chief Deputy Director of Operations. In this capacity, Mr. Cruz oversaw the delivery of California data services to over 400 state and local government entities, was responsible of the state’s consolidated email systems, and for operating the largest telecommunications network in the state.
Cruz has served at the CIO at the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) from 2010-2011. At DHCS, Cruz oversaw a $1 billion project portfolio and some of California’s biggest IT initiatives, including a mission-critical Medicaid Management Information System expansion and upgrade. Cruz has spearheaded a cloud readiness assessment of the state’s major health IT systems. Under Cruz’s leadership, the department enacted a voluntary teleworking and virtual desktops plan for IT workers in order to attract and retain top talent.
Cruz has worked for the state government for more than a decade after beginning his career in the private sector as a project manager and consultant. He was CIO at the California Department of Food and Agriculture (2007-2010) and an IT manager at the Department of Health Services (2004-2007).
Cruz earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Management from California State University at Sacramento and attended the UC Davis Executive Program in Leadership Excellence.

Joseph Morris is Vice President of Research 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.

Joe Panora has over 34 years of state public service with fourteen (14) years serving in the Correctional Safety/Public Safety Law Enforcement as IT Director/Chief Information Officer (CIO). Joe Panora was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger and Governor Brown to serve as Director of the Enterprise Information Services (EIS) for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), since January 2008. During his career, Joe has also served for the following departments: Caltrans, Franchise Tax Board, Employment Development Department, State Controller’s Office and California Youth Authority. Joe retired from state service as the Director of EIS for CDCR in December 2014. In January 2015, Joe formed Panora Associates INC.

Governor Brown appointed Amy Tong as Director of the Department of Technology on June 30, 2016. She was serving as Interim Director of the California Department of Technology since April 1, 2016. Prior to joining the Department of Technology, Amy Tong served as the Chief Deputy Director of the Office of Systems Integration (OSI) and the Agency Information Officer of the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS) since August 2014. As the Chief Deputy Director, Amy managed the daily operations of OSI, with the main focus on enterprise service functions, and provided oversight on processes and procedures to ensure the success of major project delivery. Amy’s highest priority was to strengthen OSI’s ability to provide excellent service such as project management and procurement management to customers, and being innovative in utilizing technology as the business enabler. As the Agency Chief Information Officer, Amy worked closely with CHHS and its departments’ key members to establish, promote, and implement a strategic governance body and process to govern the portfolio of technology investments in the CHHS. Prior to her joining OSI, Amy has 20 years of business, technology, and management experience in the public sector. Previously, she served as the Deputy Director and Chief Information Officer (CIO) at California Lottery, Chief Technology Officer at Board of Equalization; Chief of the Data Center at California Public Employees’ Retirement System; and was the acting CIO at the Water Resources Control Board. Amy has a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Information System (MIS) and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from California State University, Sacramento.
In addition to her professional career, Amy also spent the past 15 years serving the community as a volunteer. She is the former national vice-chair of a non-profit organization, with the mission to empower community members in civic engagement, youth leadership development, and community service collaboration. Amy is continuing her community involvement by serving as a member of the Planning Commission for the City of Elk Grove.