Baton Rouge – Commissioner of Administration Angele Davis announced today that Edward Driesse has been selected to serve as Chief Information Officer (CIO) for Louisiana state government.  Driesse, of Lafayette, has 15 years experience as a chief information officer in both the public and private sectors, including three Fortune 500 companies.  Driesse is currently the CIO for the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH).

“When it comes to information technology, state government must function more like a business, and Edward Driesse has the background and expertise to help lead that transformation,” said Commissioner of Administration Angele Davis.  “As CIO, Ed will assist our goals to improve service while cutting costs to our customers – the  taxpayers – and will serve as a lead change agent implementing this administration’s vision to improve state government information sharing, integration, efficiency, and transparency.”

The state’s CIO heads the Office of Information Technology in the Division of Administration (DOA) within the Office of the Governor. The CIO is the state’s point person for matters related to IT and IT resources, including setting policies, standards, hardware and software deployment, strategic and tactical planning, acquisition, management, and operations in keeping with industry trends, both private and public. The CIO oversees several IT organizations within the DOA, acting as architect and primary executor of technical and business strategy for IT in Louisiana state government.

As a member of the Commissioner of Administration’s management team, the CIO is principal adviser to the Governor and executive cabinet on IT policy, including acquisition and management of IT resources. The CIO monitors one of the most active e-government operations among the states as well as being a vital partner in implementing the Commissioner’s initiatives to increase government transparency. 

Driesse has served as CIO for DHH since 2007.  Prior to that, he served as CIO for AECOM Technology Corporation, a global design and management services company in Los Angeles, California, where he managed a budget of over $50 million and a staff of 260.

His previous experience also includes serving as CIO for Foster Wheeler, Ltd., a global engineering and construction company in Clinton, New Jersey, where he oversaw the global deployment of the JD Edwards integrated applications system.  Driesse has also served as Vice President and CIO for Zimmer, Inc., in Warsaw, Indiana, and for HealthTrust, Inc., in Nashville, Tennessee.

Driesse holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and a Master of Science degree in computer science, both from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.