Deborah Giles
Executive Director

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Deborah Giles is responsible for aligning key governmental relationships and shaping policy on behalf of the members of CFT. Deborah brings to CFT more than 20 years of first-hand experience working with government entities. She has a long record of accomplishments in both the public and private sectors and has built an extensive network of working relationships.
A government relations consultant for many years, Deborah has successfully consulted for many Fortune 500 corporations. She also worked in the U.S. Congress for the Committee on Banking and Financial Services. She served as a Chief of Staff for several members in the Texas Legislature, as well as Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Inspector General for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC).

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Executive Advisors

​Michael Hussey

Michael Hussey was appointed Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the State of Utah Department of Technology Services in October 2015. He has been with the Department of Technology Services since 2006.
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​Rosa Akhtarkhavari

Rosa Akhtarkhavari has worked for the City of Orlando for over 25 years, and currently serves as the Chief Information Officer.
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Tanya Hannah

​Tanya brings over 20 years to her role as Interim CIO, King County, Washington. Her work focuses on the customer and bringing inventive solutions to the Pacific Northwest community. 

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Ying Chan

Ying is the deputy director of CIO in Austin, TX. With over 25 years of industry experience, he offers a deep background in increasing roles of responsibility across the private and public sectors. ​
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Stephen Elkins

Stephen serves as Chief Information Officer for the City of Austin’s Communications and Technology Management Department. 
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Dr. Charles Grindle

Charles is an Information Scientist specializing in information security, policy and strategy. 

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Sam Segran

​Sam Segran is the CIO and Vice President for IT at Texas Tech University. He has been active in the field for over 30 years.

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​Jim Weaver

Jim is the Director and State CIO for Washington Technology Solutions. He has over 32 years of experience in the IT industry, most notably as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Chief Technology Officer.

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Board Members