As the Deputy CIO for the City of New Orleans, Whitney Soenksen specializes in identifying opportunities to lead City staff and residents through digital change AND develop processes to improve digital equity and City operations. Whitney has been with the City of New Orleans for 7 years, first serving as a project manager for Mayor Mitch Landrieu. She has worked for 15 years at both the local and national level, building and managing new initiatives and leading teams. In June she traveled to China with Eisenhower Fellowships to examine Smart Cities initiatives and how the technology revolution has affected typically under-resourced communities.