It’s been just over a month since Richard McHattie became Chief Information Officer for Maricopa County, Arizona, and he’s embarked on a unique path to becoming the top technology official in the nation’s fourth-largest county. I have walked
McHattie served five years as the Maricopa County Clerk of the Superior Court and Chief Innovation Officer before becoming the chief technology official for Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix. In that role, Mr. McHattie oversaw a system for processing paper and electronic court records, which he estimated constituted the largest document management system in the state.
He said his team implemented the new process using artificial intelligence and robotic process automation. Emerging technologies like this are a key focus in transforming the way courts do business, he said.
“You can talk about all the great technology out there, but at the end of the day, what really matters is that we have delivered new capabilities to the business that will help improve service delivery and improve customer impact.” McHattie told State Scoop.
Beginning of pet recovery
But before spending 17 years in the county, McHattie began his entrepreneurial career while attending Moravian University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
He said parents who were showing dogs around came across the then-new technology of implanting RFID chips in dogs’ ears instead of tattooing them. And McHattie’s family turned it into a business.
“We’ve built it into a true identification and recovery system across the United States and Canada,” he told StateScoop. “It’s been a really rewarding job recovering lost pets and bringing them home safely. , did everything possible to bring it home safely.”
He said the experience instilled in him a spirit of passion for his work, a trait McHattie still retains.
“And it still haunts me that the most compelling thing you can do is be really purposeful and passionate about what you’re doing,” he said.
Return to OET
McHattie’s appointment as CIO is a return to county government Enterprise Technology Bureau, a division that provides technology support across more than 50 divisions. Prior to joining the High Court, Mr. McHattie served as county deputy commissioner and interim CIO.
Technology has changed since then, but the primary focus of the team of more than 200 employees remains building and strengthening a modern and responsive government, he said.
“We have a great management team here. They are very talented technicians and they understand why we exist,” he said. “And we are committed to providing our department with new and improved capabilities so that we can improve service delivery and reduce costs as needed to meet our goals of financial responsibility for the County. exists in.”
When it comes to projects he’s passionate about, McHattie said he has a number of initiatives he’d like to take on. One is the launch of an online national self-service portal, a ‘one-stop-shop’ for government services. Another, he said, is to continue automating processes to save employees time and improve accessibility to all county services.
“Everything we can do to improve access to the county and transform it from a digital perspective to improve access to services is very exciting for us,” McHattie said. “That’s kind of the journey we’re on now.”
