Cover Story
Meadow Wing & Focused Care
interview. “Had you come to this office six months ago, there would have been large shelves, lots of large files, lots of old books. But really, everything we need to get our work done today we can digitize.� “I want to be a poster child for this for the city. I want to say, ‘Come to my office and you’ll see that, as best I can, I want everything to be digital.’�
trative Services Department. Last year, City Manager James Keene decided to make IT a standalone department and to create a cabinetlevel position to oversee it. Now, in addition to keeping computers running at City Hall, the department is charged with re-invigorating the city’s digital presence and leading the “open dataâ€? movement that Keene touted in a presentation to the City Council in the beginning of the year. ÂŞ =SYÂŤZI KSX XS FVIEO SYX The movement, which sprouted SJ XLEX G]GPI =SYÂŤZI KSX out of discussions between Keene and Reichental, aims to harness the XS HS XLMRKW HMJJIVIRXP] yottabytes of brainpower from Palo 8LEXÂŤW XLI QMRHWIX -ÂŤQ Alto’s engineering community for what city officials often refer to as XV]MRK XS FVMRK LIVI ÂŤ “social good.â€? It’s also a practical ÂŚ .SREXLER 6IMGLIRXEP GLMIJ manifestation of Reichental’s genMRJSVQEXMSR SJJMGIV GMX] SJ 4EPS %PXS eral philosophy about government data: It should be easily available to Reichental is Palo Alto’s first- and accessible by the public. ever chief information officer. He “When we think about open data is an affable technologist with two in the public domain, the vast madecades in software design and a re- jority of the data we have belongs to sume that includes stints at O’Reilly the public and we should treat it that Media (which happens to be the pub- way,â€? he said. “Technology for sevlisher of “Hackersâ€?) and Pricewater- eral decades has not allowed ease of houseCoopers and a TEDx talk on access. What we see is — with the digital privacy. He has contributed emergence of Internet technology his thoughts on technology to NPR, — the ease with which we create CNBC and Forbes and various other a channel that allows outside parnational publications. Last year, he ticipants to consume data that lives beat out close to 150 applicants for within the organization now allows the new position, which he assumed us to do new things. It has a terrific in December. context in the public sector.â€? “Silicon Valley, and Palo Alto At times, as Reichental discusses specifically, have a particular mean- his plans to revamp the IT departing and a particular influence in IT ment, he sounds like an Apple innovation in the United States and, executive looking for ways to cut frankly, globally,â€? he said, explain- manufacturing costs. But instead ing his decision to accept the job. “It of China, the recipients of the city’s was a compelling area of work and business would be companies like a very compelling community of Google that provide cloud-based technologists and technology com- services at low or no cost. His vision panies and entrepreneurs.â€? calls for outsourcing the tedious Now, he is shepherding the city’s nuts and bolts of the city’s IT operadigital efforts and bridging the gap tion to private vendors and to rely on between City Hall and the city’s rich “freemiumâ€? services like Gmail — ecosystem of software engineers, services that offer basic services for entrepreneurs and designers. He is free and then charge customers who also leading a 30-member team that want to go beyond the basics. until recently was subsumed in the bureaucracy of the city’s Adminis(continued on next page)
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� We provide high quality, bonded and insured caregivers, who are experienced in care for older adults. � We are the leader in 24 hours a day, 7 days a week live-in care. � We provide the culinary training for our caregivers at Sur La Table, to improve their skills and our clients’ meals. � Our experts wrote the books Handbook for Live-In Care and Happy to 102, available on Amazon.com. They are a resource for the industry as well as families. Veronica Weber
Celestine Johnson, creative director of the venture company Innovation Endeavors, was a key player in organizing Saturday’s “Super Happy Block Party� hackathon.
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