Governor Polis Appoints State CIO and Executive Director of Technology Office

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DENVER — Today, Gov. Jared Polis announced his appointment of seasoned technology leader Anthony (Tony) Neal-Graves as the state’s new Chief Information Officer (CIO) and the Office of Information Technology’s (OIT) Executive Director. 

We’re excited for Tony to lead our state’s technology initiatives,” said Gov. Jared Polis. “Tony’s collaborative approach to serving both state agencies and all Coloradans will ensure that we continue to efficiently deliver and expand virtual access to government services. This year has demonstrated the critical need for reliable remote access to programs of all kinds and we are confident Tony will thrive in this role.”

Neal-Graves has served in an interim role since September 2020. Neal-Graves joined OIT in March 2017 as Executive Director of the newly formed Colorado Broadband Office, during which time state rural household broadband access has increased from 73 to 87%. In October 2019 Neal-Graves took on the additional role of OIT Chief Operations Officer, overseeing the finance, human resources and legislative affairs teams. The state is recruiting for a new leader of the Colorado Broadband Office. Apply now.

As CIO, Neal-Graves will lead nearly 1,000 technology professionals responsible for the secure operation, delivery and innovation of information and communications technology services for over 31,000 state agency employees across 1,300 locations. He will also oversee major initiatives such as the myColorado mobile app, the state’s multi-year IT Transformation Program, and Colorado’s rural broadband expansion efforts, among others. 

"It’s a tremendous honor to be appointed by Gov. Polis as state CIO to lead IT operations and transformation in Colorado,” Neal-Graves explained. “I am committed to working in partnership with OIT’s broad and diverse stakeholder groups to provide secure technology solutions that improve the way Coloradans interact with state services. Ultimately, I’m here to support my fellow residents."

Prior to joining the public sector, Neal-Graves spent more than 16 years in executive roles at Intel Corporation - including Vice President and General Manager of Intel China, the PC Client Group, and Industrial and Energy Solutions - where he worked on numerous domestic and international businesses requiring strategic vision, strong employee engagement and creative technology solutions. Among Neal-Graves’s most memorable accomplishments was living in Shanghai and Shenzhen China for four years to build a software development organization. 

Neal-Graves held numerous leadership positions in the communications industry working for AT&T Bell Laboratories, AT&T Corporation and Lucent Technologies. Throughout his career, Neal-Graves has been a leader in diversity and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) volunteer efforts. He shares the state’s commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and was recently honored by the Denver Business Journal as a C-Suite Awards Honoree.

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