News and Updates

May 15, 2018

City Hall Spotlight on Kimberly W. LaGrue

by Greg M. Lawson, Deputy Director
Filed under: community, infrastructure, leadership, neighborhood spotlight, orleans, spotlight

  1. What is your job in 25 words or less? To oversee the delivery of stable technology services to all City departments, and to drive New Orleans’ ability to address challenges with smart technology solutions.

 

  1. What aspect of your job do you enjoy the most?  I enjoy solving the smallest and largest problems with technology.  I realize that if not used responsibly, technology can actually become a part of the problem instead of the solution.  So a very important part of my job, and our team’s work, is to help users get the most benefit from technology tools in their daily work.  It’s great to hear someone say, “I didn’t know I could do that!”

 

  1. What is the one accomplishment, at work of which you are most proud? Why   Having the opportunity to represent the work of our great team of IT professionals and the City of New Orleans, which is nationally recognized as one of the best cities at using data.  Our City team is a very diverse, multi-talented group, and I am proud to learn from them and carry their work forward.

 

  1. What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like best about your neighborhood?  I currently live on the Westbank, but lived in the Desire area of the 9th Ward from my childhood through Hurricane Katrina.  It will always be my neighborhood, and what I like best is how it has survived over the years.  Our neighbors were on the ground very early post-Katrina, battling blight and bringing residents back into the neighborhood.  Many of the home owners in the area returned quickly to begin rebuilding, and I enjoy going back to visit with them and their families.

  

  1. Any random facts you could share with us?  The ITI department manages more than 3000 computers and phones at 125 City sites, including Police and Fire stations.  Our NOLA311 office handles over 200,000 citizen calls per year and performs well above national call center averages.

 

  1. Additional facts about the work or department?  The majority of the IT services we provide, from ServiceDesk requests to password resets to website development, can be found on the Neutral Ground at employee.nola.gov.  Our Web and GIS teams have a new home in the City’s VA building at 1601 Perdido Street.
 

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