Teri Takai

Teri Takai is the Executive Director of the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. She worked for Ford Motor Company in global application development and information technology strategic planning and served as the Chief Information Officer of Michigan and California before becoming the first woman appointee as Chief Information Officer of the U.S. Department of Defense. Ms. Takai has won numerous awards including Governing Magazine’s Public Official of the Year, CIO Magazine’s CIO Hall of Fame, Government Technology Magazine’s Top 25 Doers, Dreamers & Drivers, the Women in Defense Excellence in Leadership Award and the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.