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Orlando Names Deputy Chief Information Officer as New CIO

Roberto Lopez has been with the city more than 20 years, much of that as a computer operations manager. He replaces Rosa Akhtarkhavari, who stepped down earlier this month after more than a decade as CIO.

An aerial view of downtown Orlando, Florida.
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Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer has appointed 20-year executive Roberto Lopez as the city’s new chief information officer.
Roberto Lopez.
LinkedIn

The news, shared Monday via the city’s LinkedIn page, stated: “Roberto has been a key part of our team, serving as deputy chief information officer for the past two years. With nearly 23 years of dedicated service to the city and several leadership roles in the IT department, Roberto is the perfect fit for this position.” His first day as CIO will be June 23.

Lopez first joined the city in September 2001, as a technology business analyst focused on facilitating software and hardware selection and business process re-engineering, to implement a citywide recreation management package.

From there, he moved up the ranks to become a computer operations manager. In this role, he managed and supervised the city’s daily computer operations for more than 3,000 end users across various locations. He held this role for 16 years, from 2006 to 2022.

After that, he was appointed deputy CIO and worked alongside his predecessor, Rosa Akhtarkhavari, for almost two years.

“I have had the privilege of working with and being mentored by some great people along the way, but two stand out. At the beginning of my career by Alberto Pabon and, most recently, by Rosa Akhtarkhavari,” Lopez wrote in a LinkedIn post about his recent promotion.

As the city’s CIO, Lopez will pick up where Akhtarkhavari left off June 7, by overseeing a 15-member IT team and a $29,502,020 budget.

More information about Lopez and the city’s IT department can be found online.

This story first appeared in Industry Insider — Florida, part of e.Republic, Government Technology's parent company.
Katya Diaz is a staff writer for Government Technology. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in global strategic communications from Florida International University.