Departments In Depth: Information Technology
By Ellen Coyne, Communications Department Intern
The Information Technology Department ’ s employees can be described as “… the custodians of your data to ensure that tax dollars spent on technology are being used effectively to deliver security to citizens. ” In fact, that is exactly how Larry Clement, IT Director, described his job when he was recently interviewed about his department. The IT department is composed of 4 functional areas: general government support, public safety support, GIS, and cyber security. Analysts, including Ryan “ Walker ” Merryman, Andrew Hackey, Cole Shifflett, Jim Whipp and Larry Clement, work behind the scenes to provide tech solutions for the residents in the County. The IT Department is directly assisting residents every day through their work on the County website and is currently working on an app, through the open data portal, that would locate polling locations around Orange.
Director Larry Clement has been with the department for 11 years. Clement ’ s start with technology began with one life - changing decision. “ My career in IT started with a scratch off lottery ticket in 1988. My parents had filled out a losing scratch off lottery ticket and mailed it in for a second chance drawing. They were selected to be on TV and spin a wheel for prize money. They won $25,000 and purchased my first computer, a commodore 64. This lightning fast computer had 64k of ram with no internal hard drive, it came with a 5 ¼ floppy drive with 720k of storage. The monitor was a 13” black and white television set. ” Not only does he run the department, but Clement oversees cybersecurity, a role which he takes very seriously. As a government employee for IT, Clement knows how the residents of Orange County trust his department with private information, and it is his
Larry
duty to keep the public ’ s trust and to keep their information safe. Although many directly see T ’ s work through online payments, signing up for classes, and the open data portal, without Clement ’ s service and hard work, Orange County ’ s government would not be able to run smoothly.
Page 3 | July, 2021
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