ROLE TO BRING GREATER FOCUS ON DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING, DIVERSITY FOR CITY LEADERSHIP
SAN DIEGO – Building on his efforts to diversify city leadership and create an administration reflective of the people it serves, Mayor Todd Gloria has appointed San Diego native Kirby Brady to be the City’s first chief innovation officer. As a Black woman, Brady is one of the few women or people of color to be named CIO of a major American city.
“I couldn’t be prouder to have Kirby Brady as San Diego’s first chief innovation officer,” Mayor Gloria said. “Kirby’s unique experiences coupled with her creativity, drive and passion for civic innovation are going to help our City harness the data and technology we need to stretch taxpayer dollars while providing world-class service for people in every neighborhood.”
Brady has been the director of the City’s Performance and Analytics Department for the past year and will continue to lead the department in her new role. Her experience has provided her with a deep understanding of the City’s robust datasets and a strong relationship with department leadership across the City to help them work more efficiently and effectively.
“I’m thrilled to help usher in a new era that puts data and equity at the forefront of decision making at City Hall,” Brady said. “Over the past year, I’ve seen firsthand the innovative spirit of so many of our City employees and welcome the opportunity to serve them so they can better serve the public.”
Mayor Gloria shifted the Performance and Analytics Department to report directly to the Mayor’s office and created the CIO role to support his efforts to use data to solve complex problems and develop innovative solutions that promotes equity, advances economic prosperity, achieves justice and builds a stronger, more resilient San Diego.
Brady and her team in the Performance and Analytics Department support the City’s ongoing efforts to use data to drive decisions, develop a more efficient financial practices and offer more online services, such as the City’s popular “Get It Done” application.
In her new role, Brady will also be responsible for creating and promoting a culture of innovation among the City workforce. She and her team will foster a workplace where employees are empowered to take smart risks, think outside the box and become change agents for their departments and the City as a whole.
Prior to joining the City of San Diego, Brady spent four years working for the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation where she oversaw the research efforts of the organization. Her team’s work focused on analyzing local economic trends, including quantifying the economic activity of regional industries and evaluating policy impacts. Brady spent seven years working for the San Diego Association of Governments where she managed the long-range population and housing forecast program for the region.
Brady holds a bachelor’s in regional development from the University of Arizona and a master’s in urban planning from the University of Southern California.
