Today’s government agencies are facing some serious challenges. From a shortage of qualified IT workers, to tightening budgets, and expanding data requirements, these key issues are plaguing Chief Information Officers (CIOs.) To combat these issues, NASCIO is looking to artificial intelligence (AI) to increase efficiency, analyze data, and implement security structures.
At the recent National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) conference, celebrating its fiftieth year, CIOs discussed what the next fifty years will look like. And one thing is for sure, those years will be shaped by AI. According to the NASCIO report, “Delivering on Digital Government: Achieving the Promise of Artificial Intelligence,” those surveyed said they lack the resources to keep up with the modern government’s demands. 32 percent of these respondents also agreed AI technology can help bridge the gap.
This lack of resources stems from limited budgets and high turnover rates with state staff, explained John Wilson, senior sales manager at SolarWinds. For state agencies, downtime with employee onboarding and training isn’t an option, which is why it’s important for CIOs to find a trusted technology partner who can keep things moving.
This is a shift from the way CIOs have been running their agencies. The role of CIO is changing, Wilson explained. “CIOs no longer have to be subject matter experts,” he said. “They rely on partners, which are a big piece of the equation.”
With partners bringing AI to the table that can analyze data, free up employees for higher-value tasks, and implement security solutions, CIOs have “a portfolio of solutions at their disposal” for when the workload becomes too much or there’s an interruption in their team.
According to the survey, 48 percent of CIOs would use AI to take on menial tasks and 49 percent responded that AI would be implemented to analyze large amounts of data. With an abundance of uses for AI, it’s clear state CIOs will be leveraging the technology across multiple verticals of their organizations for years to come.
In the next fifty years of NASCIO, Wilson suggests the role of CIO will continue to shift. “CIOs have evolved to become a broker of services, managing partner relationships and keeping the right players on the bench” is a core function which allows them to effectively meet the needs of their agency.
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