Chris Nchopa-Ayafor has been the Tarrant County Chief Information Officer (CIO) since July 2014.  In this capacity, Chris provides comprehensive strategic and tactical direction for the Information Technology Department and ensures continuous delivery of IT services across the county in collaboration with the county administration.

Prior to joining Tarrant County as Deputy CIO in January 2013, he served as Deputy CIO at Maricopa County, Arizona.  Prior to Maricopa County, Chris spent several years in the private sector and academia as an information technology engineer, consultant, researcher and college faculty.  He holds three graduate degrees and certificates in the areas of urban environmental management, information systems engineering, and business administration.  Chris has earned several industry certifications and was a 2012 recipient of “The Ones to Watch” award by the CIO Executive Council and CIO Magazine. Most recently Chris received the 2019 Dallas CIO of the Year Award in the category Nonprofit/ Public Sector ORBIE, for government, education and not-for-profit organizations.

Chris serves on various IT committees that help shape the direction and drive the adoption and application of technology to solve business problems at the County.