Shaping the Future of Information Technology

Tony Batalla, CIO for the City of Oakland

Tony Batalla, CIO for the City of Oakland

Tony Batalla is a technology executive with years of hands-on experience as an IT professional. He currently serves as the chief information officer and director of information technology for the City of Oakland. He specializes in leadership, innovation, technology management, IT governance, process and project management, and building successful business relationships and partnerships.

Please tell our readers about your journey and key roles and responsibilities at the organization.

I progressed in my career by initially pursuing entrepreneurial pursuits before transitioning into the IT industry because it matched my interests and skills. Through growth in the field, I recognized the importance of technology in supporting various business functions and processes beyond technical systems. As an IT leader, you gain a unique perspective of the organization, seeing beyond silos and understanding how technology influences outcomes across the company.

I am currently responsible for managing infrastructure, security, applications, enterprise services, help desk support, project management, application development, mobile and cloud services, and everything in between. Our IT department is a full-service shop.

What are some of the changes that you have observed in the industry recently?

Perhaps the most significant change has been the shift towards hybrid work, which has now become permanent. Managing hybrid work and teams has meant changing business processes toward more digital services and supporting them with the right technology. IT teams did commendable work in a short period of time to enable hybrid work. We now have to build on that byfiguring out how to integrate all of these digital services into a cohesive user experience, from the devices we use, thetools and apps, to how we access, share, create and secure our data.

"When you have limited resources and a significant need, you must decide what to invest in, what to focus on, and what problems to solve"

What are some of the challenges faced by leaders in the industry?

There are two related challenges that public sector organizations often face. The first one is the need to modernize legacy infrastructure. This modernization can be complex and challenging, especially for systems that are mission-critical and well established in the organization. The second, related challenge are budget constraints and theongoing tensions between competing demands. Structural deficits make it harder to invest in modernization.

How do you envision the future of the industry?

I can’t predict the future, but the best advice I can offer is to thoroughly understand your organization, its needs, and your team's strengths and limitations. When you have limited resources and significant needs, you have todecide what to invest in, what to focus on, and what problems to solve. You must also decide which problems to live with. These decisions must be as close to correct as possible, because you don’t have a lot of room for error. So, understanding your organization and your team's capacity is the probably most valuable thing you can do. Once you commit to something, follow through with it.

Project Management

Information Technology