The Forum Welcomes more than 300 Attendees at the 38th Annual Meeting

(Albany, NY – October 7, 2024) – The NYS Forum held its 38th annual meeting on October 7th with over 300 government and corporate members attending. Executive Director Fran Reiter kicked off the meeting by providing an overview of the Forum’s accomplishments and successes for the 2023-2024 program year. High on Fran’s list were the continuing relationships between government and corporate membership, the success of the NYS Forum’s Training Academy, the establishment of the Government IT Leadership Roundtable, and an introduction to the recently launched and already successful Artificial Intelligence Workgroup. Fran also highlighted the substantial increase in member participation within Forum programming and the opportunities to collaborate over the next program year.

Attendees also heard from Chairman of the NYS Forum Board of Directors, Jim Bell - Director of Senate Technology Services. Jim, a longtime advocate for the Forum, discussed the benefits of Forum membership, highlighting where the Forum is going and what members can do to further its success, the health of the organization, and some recent changes to the Board of Directors. Jim introduced new board members: Robert Aboulafia, The City University of New York; Arielle Bernstein, Salesforce, NYS ITCR Chair; and Paul Clapp, Adobe, NYC ITCR Chair. Jim also announced the new IT Corporate Roundtable Vice Chairs, Melissa D’Andrea, Workday, and Carolaine Pino, ExtraHop.

The meeting featured two dynamic keynote speakers. Appearing first was NYS Chief Information Officer and Director of the NYS Office of Information Technology Services, Dru Rai. Dru gave an informative and enlightening talk about the current state of NY technology, his priorities, and future government technology needs.

Next, Albert Pulido, Deputy Secretary for Finance & Technology discussed current and future projects (centralization of IT and the direct fund project) that NYS is undertaking to strengthen tech at large and to assure NY stays a leader in technology for the benefit of all New Yorkers.

In closing, Forum workgroups reported on their past year accomplishments and their plans for the coming year. Overall, the event provided an opportunity for Forum members to connect, get updated on Forum activities, and learn what's in store at the Forum for ‘24/’25.

We would like to thank all our attendees for taking the time to attend our Annual Membership Meeting and for providing input throughout the year. The success of The NYS Forum depends on participation. Your input is critical to ensure that our programs continue to be relevant and of the highest quality. As part of a member organization, you have an opportunity to shape the agenda! Thanks to all who participated.