PBN Bids Farewell To Jim Willis: "IT Pioneer Leaving R.I. this Month"
Posted by Jack
At the last Geek Dinner, we bid farewell to Providence Geek and e-government advocate/expert extraordinaire Jim Willis.
The Providence Business News’ David Ortiz has written an excellent article highlighting Jim’s tenor at the helm of RI Secretary of State’s e-goverment services initiative. Here’s an excerpt:
[Willis], who was recruited by Brown in 2003 as director of e-government services, transformed the inner workings of the office’s Web site – www.state.ri.us – from the standard proprietary software to open-source code. The results have won national recognition while also making official information more accessible to the state’s citizens – exactly what Willis had in mind when he made the switch. “If you want a transparent government,� he said, “well, let’s run it on transparent software.�
The print-version of the article includes a photo of Jim along with fellow Secretary of State IT staffer and Providence Geek Christopher Fowler.
December 29th, 2006 10:53
Thanks, Jack! I’ll miss the Geek Dinners in PVD. If anyone is planning on visiting NJ (and why wouldn’t you want to ;-) please drop me an email. You can grab my contact info from http://www.jimwillis.org
Missing RI already,
Jim
December 30th, 2006 16:24
We’re going to miss you, Jim!!!
December 30th, 2006 16:27
[...] David Ortiz: “An IT pioneer who introduced open-source code to Rhode Island’s government Web sites is leaving after four years to return to his native New Jersey…” We’re going to miss you, Jim! Come back any time! [...]