Overview

September 14

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, many state unemployment insurance (UI) systems were stressed beyond their breaking points, exposing problems in both technology and business processes. During the crisis, agencies rushed to deploy quick—and some not-so-quick—fixes to stabilize and improve systems, often using cloud to deploy chatbots, virtual agents, web self-service and other features to get critical benefits to struggling residents. As we cautiously emerge from the pandemic response, what have we learned? How can we modernize our systems—people, process, and technology—to weather the next storm?

Join Government Technology on September 14 at 11 a.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Eastern as we host a live interactive conversation focused on the future of UI modernization. You’ll hear UI and labor thought leaders share their thinking about what went right, what went wrong, and what they learned through the pandemic that is shaping their modernization efforts. You’ll also get real-life insights from organizations that have UI modernization projects underway.

How can we improve the customer experience, so claimants and jobseekers feel supported, not stranded by themselves?
What do we need from the IT community to make sure this does not happen again?

Speakers

Xavier Hughes

Senior Innovation Fellow and Director of Data for the American Dream

Xavier Hughes specializes in large scale innovation, smart cities, big data, product development, conceptual design, and service innovation and automation. Within the Office of Innovation, Xavier provides project management support for the New Jersey Data for the American Dream (NJD4AD) initiative – an interactive, mobile-responsive website offering data-driven advice for job seekers and employers about training opportunities and outcomes. Prior to joining the Office of Innovation, Xavier Hughes was the first-ever chief technology and innovation officer for the International City/County Management Association, where he helped create and support thriving communities throughout the world, including 13,000+ members, 3,000+ city managers, 1,000+ assistant city managers, 380+ county managers and 190+ assistant city managers. From 2010 to 2016, Xavier served as the first chief innovation officer in the history of the U.S. Department of Labor, where he led the development of innovative business practices, performance and technology applications to improve outcomes and simplify operations.

Stacia Jankowski

Director, Office of Integrity and Accountability, Office of the Secretary, Department of Workforce Development, State of Wisconsin

Stacia Jankowski's expertise is in serving project management leadership for the most challenging IT transformations. Her work has encompassed over 20 years working on some of the largest IT public benefits systems within the State of Wisconsin, including a system that at one point was serving over 1.2 million of Wisconsin's citizens. Stacia's current role is a project management role for the Wisconsin Unemployment Insurance modernization effort.

Scott Jensen

CEO and VP of External Affairs for Research Improving People's Lives (RIPL)

Scott is the former director of the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training where he streamlined the Department’s Unemployment Insurance program to speed up service for claimants and employers alike, improve accuracy, and keep costs down. Before coming to Rhode Island, Jensen served as Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation from 2012 to 2014. Jensen holds a BA in History from Illinois State, and a Master of Arts in Liberal Education from St. John’s College in Annapolis, MD. Jensen was a Ph.D. candidate in Philosophy at the Graduate Faculty of the New School for Social Research in New York, NY, where he specialized in Husserlian phenomenology and late-Wittgenstein. Scott now serves as the CEO and VP of External Affairs for Research Improving People's Lives (RIPL).

Stuart Venzke

State and Local Health and Human Services Executive, Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Stuart Venzke is part of AWS’ Health and Human Services team, focused on labor, workforce, and human services. Before joining AWS, Stuart led the state and local government health and human services business for a global system integrator, and before that was the chief operating officer of a large, integrated public sector health and human services agency. He has more than twenty-five years of experience as a health and human services executive or consultant, always working to provide more effective, more efficient, and more responsive services.

William (Bill) Rials, Ph.D. — Moderator

Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Government and professor and associate director of the Tulane University School of Professional Advancement IT and Cybersecurity Program

William (Bill) Rials, Ph.D., is a professor and associate director (department chair) of the Tulane University School of Professional Advancement IT and Cybersecurity Program, where he focuses on continually delivering and updating the program curriculum based on innovative and emerging technologies. Before transitioning to academia and higher education, he had a diverse gov tech career delivering value to state agencies, local governments, and law enforcement agencies throughout the state of Mississippi. He has served in CIO, CTO, and CISO roles for local governments and also in various leadership positions within the state of Mississippi’s IT organization as a deputy to the state CIO. Dr. Rials holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Belhaven University, a master’s degree in computer information systems and cybersecurity from Missouri State University, as well as a Ph.D. in higher education administration and public administration from Jackson State University.

Webinar

Moving UI Systems to the Cloud: Creating Your Modernization Roadmap