WDVA Chief Information Officer, Full-Time Permanent, Central Office, Olympia

Chief Information Officer

Full-Time - Permanent Olympia Central Office

We are looking for a visionary executive leader and IT professional with a history of fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and partnership! We are now accepting applications for our agencies Chief Information Officer (CIO). This is a full-time, permanent position headquartered at our Central Office in historic downtown Olympia, WA.

As the CIO, you will lead WDVA’s agency IT strategies and ensure technology decisions are mission-aligned, future-focused, and deliver measurable value to the environment, staff, and the public.

At the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA), we are passionate about our mission of “Serving Those Who Served.” As a national leader in our advocacy for nearly 500,000 veterans and their family members, we strive to connect them to earned benefits as well as innovative programs focused on their overall health and wellness. In addition, we provide critical community services through a variety of programs, and at our four State Veterans Homes located in Orting, Port Orchard, Spokane, and Walla Walla. These locations provide Medicare and Medicaid nursing home care to Veterans, including, in some instances, their spouses, widows, or Gold Star Families.

Bring your IT professional experience, leadership, and your desire to serve those who served, and apply today!

Application Review

The first review of applications will be conducted on or about 11 / 12 / 2025.

Relocation Assistance

Relocation assistance is available to qualified candidates. Please contact Aschlee.Heiny@DVA.WA.GOV for additional information.

Standard Business

Standard business hours for this position are 8 : 00 a.m. to 5 : 00 p.m., Monday through Friday in office at our Central Office in Olympia, Washington. May work nights and weekends occasionally. Emerging and urgent issues throughout the division are common and the incumbent is expected to adjust their schedule and work additional hours as needed to meet business demands and deadlines. A flexible or hybrid schedule may be available based on mission needs. Position must be able to be present, in-person at various WDVA locations and Central Office.

Travel Requirements

This position requires frequent travel for meetings and to WDVA locations throughout the state, including skilled nursing facilities, transitional housing programs, and public offices. Occasional out-of-state travel is required.

Some of what you'll do

• Lead as an executive team member for WDVA.
• Serve as voice and representative for the agency during public speaking engagements, conferences, townhall's, community veteran events and other engagements where WDVA is involved or invited to speak.
• Actively engage and collaborate with executive team peers on agency strategy, planning, and priority setting.
• Serve as the process owner for portfolio management at the executive level and develop and maintain how the agency portfolio interacts with all levels of WDVA.
• Determines the operating model for information and technology to foster business-oriented and digital-ready culture, mindsets, and practices.
• Ensure agency-wide compliance with IT-related statutes, including ADA accessibility, data privacy, cybersecurity, and records retention.
• Ensure governance outcomes are data-driven, transparent, and aligned to WDVA’s mission and strategic goals.
• Ensures integration with the enterprise’s strategic planning process, and the resulting business strategy and plans.
• Ensure compliance with WaTech security standards, WaTech enterprise policies, and federal data protection mandates.
• Oversee Division business operations.
• Establish and communicate operational and strategic priorities, engaging necessary stakeholders including division staff and business partnerships.
• Higher uptime and faster recovery with fewer regressions; reliability becomes measurable and predictable.
• Train product owners and tech leads on cost-aware architecture and service design.
• Implement and support the division’s operational compliance programs, which analyzes conformance to state and federal, for agency and division laws, rules, policies, procedures and standards.
• Oversee the agency’s cyber and data security programs, maintaining adherence to all relevant regulations and industry best practices.
• Protect, defend, detect, and eliminate security threats, and use security controls to manage agency IT risks.
• Lead and manage technology professionals.
• Engages and works with key stakeholders to map out scenarios for IT workforce transformations. Develops the IT workforce strategy and action plans that align with and enable the effective execution of business and IT strategies.
• Partners with human resources to identify leading-edge and innovative solutions to the recruitment, development, and retention of a diverse IT workforce.
• Develops and maintains an IT workforce with the appropriate mix of business knowledge, technical skills, and soft competencies. Balances the need for growing the agility required to achieve digital business objectives, ensuring the core IT functions are reliable, stable, and efficient.
• And so much more!
• For further information on this role, you can request the Position Description by contacting recruiters.dvadl@dva.wa.gov

Required

Six (6) years of relevant professional experience in technology management, enterprise systems, or digital strategy.

OR

Please Note : Years of technology experience can be substituted for the educational requirements and additional years of experience may substitute in a senior management or executive leadership role above the required years outlined.

Preferred / Desired

Special Requirements

Check out this awesome video

here to see what it is like to work for the WDVA!

Application Process

Top candidates will be contacted directly to interview for this position. Because the selection will be based on information provided by you, it is in your best interest to identify the knowledge, skills and abilities that address the mandatory and desirable qualifications described below.

Please include the following documents with your application :

1. A letter of interest describing specific qualifications.

2. A current resume detailing applicable experience and education. Finalists will be asked to provide a list of at least three professional references with current telephone numbers.

Other Information

Applicants wishing to claim Veterans Preference should attach a copy of their DD-214 (Member 4 copy), NGB 22, or signed verification of service letter from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs to their application. Please blackout any personally identifiable data such as social security numbers. For further information, please contact us at recruiters@dva.wa.gov.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Employer

Here at YOUR Washington Department of Veterans Affairs our employees come from all walks of life. We strive to hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or Veteran status.

We believe in the importance of recognizing the value each of us contribute to the success of the mission of the agency. Having a diverse workforce is this agency’s greatest resource of strength and knowledge. It is through the combination of talents and abilities that we can pursue finding effective measures on how we can provide the best customer service. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace for everyone.

The State of Washington is an equal opportunity employer. Persons with a disability who need assistance in the application process or testing process, or those needing this announcement in an alternative format, may call (360) 725-2183. TTY users should first call 711 to access the Washington Relay Service.

You are welcome to include the name and pronoun you would like to be referred to in your materials and we will honor this as you interact with our award-winning diverse and inclusive organization.

If you have any questions regarding this announcement, program, or the agency, please contact us at recruiters@dva.wa.gov.

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