Timothy Galluzi's Career of Service from the Marine Corps to Nevada's State CIO

Alex and Amy talk with Nevada CIO Timothy Galluzi about his newly elevated state CIO role in the governor's cabinet, generative AI, projects in 2024 and how his time in the Marine Corps prepared him for the role of state CIO. We also learn a surprising fact about him, his ideal vacation and where you should visit if you are coming to Nevada (that's not Las Vegas).

Find the transcript on our podcast hosting site here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/704052/14586439

Transcript

SPEAKERS

Timothy Galluzi, Amy Glasscock, Alex Whitaker

Amy Glasscock  00:05

Hi, and welcome to NASCIO voices where we talk all things state IT. I'm Amy Glasscock, in Lexington, Kentucky.

Alex Whitaker  00:12

And I'm Alex Whitaker in Washington, DC. Today we're talking with Nevada State CIO, Timothy Galluzi. We'll be pronouncing Nevada correctly and asking Tim about his role as a new Cabinet Secretary, priorities for the new year and of course, AI.

Amy Glasscock  00:25

Tim, welcome to NASCIO voices, and thanks so much for joining us.

Timothy Galluzi  00:29

Thanks, guys, for having me. I'm really looking forward to this conversation as well.

Amy Glasscock  00:33

Well, before we get started on what you're working on, tell our listeners a bit about your professional background and how you became the CIO in Nevada. 

Timothy Galluzi  00:42

Oh, it's been quite the journey, for sure. I guess you're gonna start at the beginning, right. And I first got my start in technology, as most do in high school, I ended up joining a computer club where we refurbished old computers to give out to the less fortunate, right. But then I spent eight years in the Marine Corps directly after high school where I was a telecommunications Marine. So, I did a lot of radios and telephone systems switching networking.  After my tour of service ended, after serving eight years, I was kind of lost, I needed to kind of transition into the civilian world. After spending eight years in and, you know, I really looked at college being a great opportunity for that. So, I stumbled across Western Nevada College here in Carson City. And, you know, I was just planning on being a student. So, you know, I wanted to give back. So, I helped them start up a Veteran's Resource Center and started meeting all the faculty on campus. And they found out that I had a technology background from the Marine Corps. I soon became Western Nevada College's programmer analyst, and really started my state IT career there.  And then I kind of came up through the ranks in the state IT side, you know, every time I was effectively eligible for a promotion, there would be an opportunity that, you know, was a good fit, and I knew I could make a demonstrable impact. And so, I think really, when I started to get the feel for it, leadership in the state was when I was serving as a project manager for the Office 365 deployment for the state. And, you know, I really started making contacts and building relationships. I then served as the technology investment administrator for the state. And so that that gave me the opportunity to start meeting a lot of the business leaders across the executive branch and IT leaders across the executive branch.  And then, you know, timing is kind of everything, because the Department of Administration director at the time, she saw my work as technology investment administrator, and when the then enterprise IT services division administrator position came open, I was asked to apply for it. And that was about three years ago now.  February of 2021, I was appointed as the administrator for enterprise IT services division and started leading the central IT organization for the state. After the departure of the former state CIO, about nine months later, I was kind of thrust into a role where I was wearing both hats. And I was I was the division administrator and also fulfilling some of the CIO duties. Governor Sisolak at the time, made it official about eight months later. And then thankfully, I was reappointed this last June, by now Governor Lombardo.

Alex Whitaker  03:49

Wow. Well, Tim, you are the walking embodiment of how states should develop their IT workforce.

Amy Glasscock  03:54

Yeah

Timothy Galluzi  03:55

It was quite the, quite the journey. Right. You know, I think, with this path, it definitely gave me the opportunity to kind of have my boots on the ground and, and see some of the things that I didn't necessarily appreciate about how, you know, some organizations were run, and how, you know, people were or were not embracing technology, and using technology in a strategic way. And, you know, I think we can all empathize with kind of sitting back and seeing how things are going and knowing that, hey, you know, I'd probably do it this way. Or, you know, there's got to be a better way. And, you know, if I was ever in charge, this is what I would do. And, you know, they gave me the opportunity. And I think that we're making a heck of a lot of progress now.

Alex Whitaker  04:44

Yeah, absolutely. So, speaking of progress. Last year, a bill was passed in Nevada that moved your organization from the department of administration to the governor's office, making you a cabinet secretary. What was the motivation for that move?

Timothy Galluzi  04:56

Yeah, no, that was a great bill for us. And so, in Nevada, we don't necessarily have cabinet secretaries. We have department directors that serve on the governor's cabinet. And I think that bill itself and the governor's modernization bill was really just a--to put it simply a realization that technology needs to be a strategic partner. We understand that technology is a great enabler of the business objectives of our executive branch agencies. And, you know, it needs a seat at the table. And, you know, literally figuratively, that's what we ended up doing, we ended up creating that seat at the table in the governor's cabinet. And what that's really done for us is it's, you know, elevated the conversation to the strategic level. And so that's been incredibly exciting. But I think that that was really Governor Lombardo's intent on this, was to raise the focus of it to that strategic level to be that enabler, the other executive branch agencies. Yeah, so how have things changed in your organization directly, since it was elevated? Are you able to do more, be more effective? Yeah, it's been a quite the wild ride over the past, I think it's been eight months now. And we have been more effective, I think, you know, having that seat on the governor's cabinet, being able to meet with agency directors and leaders at the strategic level, that that's really opened up our eyes, for what the department's business needs are and how technology can kind of come in and help out there. But it also opened up their eyes of what you know, what our capabilities are, and how we can be a benefit or a service to them. One of the things that we've done, and we were able to move pretty rapidly on was creating a new state's technology governance group, or my state technology Governance Committee, we really understood that, yes, we do have the authority to write it policy for the state. But the best way that we are going to be able to accomplish that was by building collaboration opportunities amongst all of the executive branch agencies, to give everybody a seat at the table in IT policy discussions. Because, you know, I'm not the one that's going to know, all of Department of Health and Human Services business needs, right. So, I want, you know, their experts sitting at the table to help inform me, so we can find alignment with our enterprise level services.  And so, we were able to move very quickly on getting that governance group set up, and there was a lot of excitement about it. And I think a lot of that is because we are at the cabinet level now. It has helped us, you know, further strengthen the partnerships that we have with other departments or executive branch partners, and really just opened up the door for that communication. And that's, that's been incredibly exciting. And, you know, I'm really looking forward to continuing to leverage that progress that we've been able to make. 

Amy Glasscock  07:57

That's really cool. We like to see that evolution of the CIO role, of course. So, switching gears a little bit. You know, I was thinking back to the early days of this podcast, you know, and like, exactly about four years ago I guess, we didn't go an episode without talking about the pandemic. And now we don't seem to go an episode without talking about generative AI. So, I'm curious with all of the hype around generative AI, how are you talking with folks at agencies about it, who are curious about using it or maybe who are already using it or maybe even scared of it?

Timothy Galluzi  08:29

It's an incredibly exciting time. I think this is an incredible opportunity to be part of the conversation when it comes to these AI technologies. To be kind of at the forefront of it instead of being you know, a laggard or falling behind. I think that's one of the differences in other technology rollouts or adoptions or visibility. What we're seeing with AI is that, you know, everybody can touch it now. Everybody can log into, you know, large language models and start testing stuff out on ChatGPT. So, we, we are definitely looking at AI technologies with an inordinate amount of cautious optimism. I think that AI is going to be a powerful tool in governments for service delivery for research and discovery. But we have to do it right. And so one of the first things that we did when it was kind of getting at the peak of the hype cycle, is we pushed out some initial guidance from my office to talk about how, you know, we can use some of these chat GBT type models safely in governments and it's effectively looking at it as you know, if you are going to use these tools, you know, do not put any data in that, you know, should not be publicly released. Right? and understand the sensitivity of the data that is going into these things. The anecdote that I use quite frequently with folks is, you know, the questions you're asking the model today could be someone else's answers tomorrow. 

Amy Glasscock  10:12

Yeah. 

Timothy Galluzi  10:12

And so just to be very cognizant of that, I have a little bit of a shameless plug, because just next week, we're going to be hosting the state, Nevada's first CIO Summit. And so, it's, as you could guess, is specifically on the topic of AI technology and government. And, you know, just like our, our vision and practice with shared governance and collaboration, we want to hear from folks that this is going to impact. And so the group that we're assembling, is, you know, representatives from across the executive branch, it's folks from higher education, it's community members, it's vendor partners. And, you know, we want everybody to be involved in this conversation, because, you know, these tools have the ability to impact everybody. And, you know, we don't want to as a state, we don't want to stifle innovation. In this field, we want to enable innovation, but we need to do it smartly. And so, I think one of the big things that I'm going to be asking the group assembled is give me the policy priorities, let me know what guidelines guardrails governance we should have in place in order to protect the state, and not stifle that innovation that comes with these tools.

Amy Glasscock  11:28

Yeah, it really important points, it seems like a lot of states are really starting to put guidelines and policies out and definitely needs to happen. And it's everything's changing. So quickly, we were having an internal meeting today about AI. And it came up that, you know, in our, just a month ago, everyone was just talking about ChatGPT. And now people are talking about CoPilot, and there's just so much functionality that's being rolled out, and all of the tools that we're using to So, so fascinating. Okay, so other than that, what are some of your other top priorities for the year ahead?

Timothy Galluzi  12:01

As you guys might know, we are on a biannual type legislative session, right? So, this is our off year. Our off year doesn't mean that we're resting on our laurels, right. So, this year, we're looking intently at statewide technology budget, right, we want to make sure that, you know, what we're doing at the enterprise level is transparent, and reduces surprises for all of our agency partners. And so that's, that's in my immediate future. So I guess that's why it's kind of top of mind, our budget kickoff is really starts next month.  So beyond that, we thankfully just got a significant amount of funding for a new content management system for the state. So we're going to be rolling that out over the next year and a half to two years. So we're really excited about being able to launch that as an enterprise level service.  We're going to continue to have conversations about AI and the appropriate governance and security measures that need to go into enable these, these tools.  We are always focused on infrastructure. And so we were currently engaged in mainframe modernization where we're looking at a update to our core network infrastructure. We're looking at opportunities to add some more lines of service when it when it comes to our network team and some adding some new, like point-to-point type technologies into our portfolio. And we've just got a lot of that kind of stuff going on. It's exciting. Beyond that, we also have a statewide ERP, that that's currently in flight right now, the project for implementing that. So, it's going to be a very busy year, here in Nevada.

Amy Glasscock  13:49

Just some simple off-year projects, right? 

Timothy Galluzi  13:51

Yeah. Right off the shelf. Call it good. Yeah. Yeah. I'm thankfully surrounded by incredibly brilliant technologists and dedicated public servants that, you know, if I was to build a bench of anybody that can get this work done, it's them. So it's wonderful. Yeah, really excited for the progress that we've already made and the stuff that we continue to look forward to.

Alex Whitaker  14:15

Awesome. So you mentioned that you got your start in it in the Marine Corps. And I'm curious, what lessons did you learn in the Marine Corps that you still use in your career today?

Timothy Galluzi  14:25

Oh, that's a great one. I think, first and foremost, one of the things that the Marine Corps taught me was resilience. And, you know, oftentimes in government technology, what we do isn't the sexiest, but we need to be there. And we need to be that that stabilizing group within state government to make sure that everyone gets the services that they need.  Being in the Marine Corps also taught me to be scrappy, right. The Marines aren't known for having the biggest budgets or the most fiscal resources compared to other branches. And so you know, you had to make do with what you got. And we often see that in government technology as well, right, you have to make sure that you're getting the most efficient and effective use out of technology. And so I think the Marine Corps definitely helped me there. I think on a more personal side, the Marine Corps really instilled in me a sense of service, and really, the practice of servant leadership, my job, I'm here to make sure that the road is clear for my teammates, right to make sure that they have the resource that they need to be successful, and to make sure that I'm protecting them. So I think the Marine Corps gave me a lot. And there's obviously, never regret. And I know that if it wasn't for my service in the Marine Corps, I wouldn't be who I am today. 

Alex Whitaker  15:53

Yeah. Wow. That's, that's really great to hear. So of course, we cannot let you go without first asking you a couple of questions about your life outside of work and a segment that we call [thunder crack] the lightning round. Are you ready? 

Timothy Galluzi  16:07

Oh yeah. Yes! Let's go.

Amy Glasscock  16:10

All right. What's something people might find surprising about you? 

Timothy Galluzi  16:14

Oh, Mercy. Nonwork. So I think what would surprise folks is I'm a trumpet player. I got my start playing trumpet in in middle school in high school, I, I started providing public service to folks by playing trumpet playing taps at veteran memorials and funerals and yeah, I think that would probably surprise even the folks I work with don't think anybody knows I play trumpet.

Amy Glasscock  16:42

Do you still play?

Timothy Galluzi  16:43

I dabble every once in a while. I don't think it would be up to the level of some of our NASCIO colleagues. Let's say, I'm not joining any ska bands anytime soon.

Alex Whitaker  16:55

Okay. Well, we might have to have you kick off a NASCIO meeting by playing something on the trumpet.

Amy Glasscock  17:02

Call to post. 

Timothy Galluzi  17:03

Right.

Alex Whitaker  17:05

So Tim, what's your idea of a dream vacation?

Timothy Galluzi  17:08

Oof, I think we would have to go with an all-inclusive and so that could be a cruise a seaside resort, somewhere where I don't have to worry about planning or logistics and just be able to disconnect, hang out with my family and just be present.

Amy Glasscock  17:28

I bet a lot of busy CIOs would agree with that. 

Alex Whitaker  17:30

Yeah. I'm past the days of hiking through the Himalayas. So I can I can agree with that.  All-inclusive is the way to go. 

Timothy Galluzi  17:37

If my wife's listening, my dream vacation is Disneyland or Disney World. 

Amy Glasscock  17:45

All right. And then finally, where is the one place in Nevada people should visit that's not Las Vegas.

Timothy Galluzi  17:54

So, I am an avid believer that Lake Tahoe is probably the most beautiful place in the continental United States. And so, they don't call it the jewel the Sierras for nothing. So I would have to say, Lake Tahoe if you're into crystal clear waters and stunning mountain views. That's definitely the place. If you want to kind of walk back to the to the era of Mark Twain then then I think a close second would probably be Virginia City with the boardwalks and the old western feel. 

Amy Glasscock  18:34

Who's not into crystal clear waters and beautiful mountain views. 

Timothy Galluzi  18:37

I mean, come on. Right?

Alex Whitaker  18:40

Awesome. All right, Tim. Well, thanks so much for your time today. We really enjoyed the conversation and appreciate you coming by.

Timothy Galluzi  18:47

Thank you guys so much for having me. It's been a blast.

Amy Glasscock  18:49

 Thanks, Tim. See you soon.  Thanks again for listening to NASCIO voices. NASCIO voices is a production of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers or NASCIO.

Alex Whitaker  19:02

Our State IT Recognition Awards are open for submission now through May 24. Do you have a great project that you think deserves recognition submitted for an award? We'll put a link in the show notes.

Amy Glasscock  19:11

We'll be back in two weeks with more great state IT content. Talk with you next time.