The changes began on March 14, when CTO Miguel Gamiño announced he would be leaving his position in several weeks. On May 8, Gamiño landed at Mastercard, where he has said he will lead efforts to work with large cities to resolve their problems. The company has worked with Chicago to better time the arrival of baseball fans at a stadium there; and with Mexico City to expand digital transportation payment opportunities.
In April, Gamiño’s Chief of Staff M. Alby Bocanegra, who had had that role for about 13 months according to his LinkedIn profile, was elevated to interim CTO, Kathleen Clark, director of communications and policy for the CTO’s office, confirmed to Government Technology. Clark has also taken on the role of interim chief of staff in the CTO’s office, she said.
“We took a look at what our functional areas were, and the leadership team, and decided to refocus a little bit. But our mission and our initiative are the same,” Clark said.
In May, Deputy CTO Jeremy Goldberg was named managing director at NYCx, the city’s new municipal tech engagement program; and at NYC Digital, the city hub for start-ups and tech.
Joshua Breitbart, who has been senior advisor for broadband to the mayor’s office since March 2015, will also now oversee smart city efforts, Clark said.
“It’s a small team, but a lot of their work right now is focused on accessibility. Our core focus, our mission, is making sure technology is accessible and benefits everyone, not just a select few,” Clark said.
The office continues to serve the mayor’s mission “to make New York City the fairest big city,” he added.
Clark said she was unaware whether an “active search” was underway by the city to identify Gamiño’s permanent replacement.
