Former Nevada CIO opts for EZ life

EzGov Inc., the Atlanta-based electronic government software and services provider, has hired former Nevada CIO Marlene Lockard to help the company maneuver through the state and local government marketplace.

In the new position of vice president of e-government strategy, Lockard will provide expertise on public policies, operating procedures, technology requirements and political hurdles at the local, state and federal level. She also will help to build and maintain large government accounts, said EzGov spokeswoman Nicole Corvette Hockin.

Lockard joined the company Sept. 22, said Corvette Hockin, and will be based in Reno, Nev. She resigned her state government post in July.

Terry Savage replaced Lockard in Nevada.

"She brought Nevada through their computer crisis and Y2K, and what she went through can only help us understand what [other] CIOs are going through," said Corvette Hockin.

A September report by Brown University ranked Nevada in the bottom tier of state Web site systems. And the state's progress in adopting digital technologies and policies earned Nevada 19th place in the 2000 Digital State Study compiled by The Progress & Freedom Foundation and the Center for Digital Government.

However, Corvette Hockin said EzGov's choice of Lockard was based on her individual qualities and shared e-government vision. "We can learn more about our clients and serving our clients from perhaps someone who worked in a state full of challenges," she said.