Connecticut finds tech chief

Connecticut Department of Information Technology

A former top technology official with Aetna, one of the nation's largest insurance companies, was named Connecticut's chief information officer yesterday.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell appointed Diane Wallace to head the state's Department of Information Technology (DOIT) following a national search to replace longtime CIO Rock Regan. Wallace, who currently lives in Illinois, is subject to confirmation by Connecticut's General Assembly.

"She is precisely the person we need to move the department forward and to accomplish the goals I have set for DOIT: excellence and innovation in the delivery of IT services for all state agencies and applying the benefits of enhanced technology to public transactions," Rell said in a statement.

The 53-year-old Wallace, who graduated from Salem State College in Massachusetts with an education degree, has held a variety of positions at Aetna, including CIO. After 27 years, she left Aetna in 2000 to join Chicago-based CNA Financial, where she served as vice president of IT from 2002 to 2003.

Connecticut's IT department was created in 1997 to improve government operations and provide better services to taxpayers through technology. It has more than 300 employees and a budget of about $90 million.

Regan, who resigned last August, was the longest-serving CIO, having held the Connecticut position for more than seven years. He was president of the National Association of State CIOs from 2001 to 2002 and is credited with starting many national and statewide initiatives.