St. Paul, MINN. — Governor Tim Walz and Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan today announced the appointment of Jon Eichten as Commissioner and State Chief Information Officer of Minnesota IT Services (MNIT). Eichten succeeds Tarek Tomes, who served as commissioner for more than seven years. 

“I’m honored by the Governor’s trust and grateful for the opportunity to serve as Commissioner and State CIO,” said Eichten. “Tarek Tomes built a strong foundation for enterprise technology in Minnesota, and I look forward to continuing that work with our partners across state government to deliver secure, modern, and reliable technology services for Minnesotans.” 

“I’m grateful for Commissioner Tomes’ leadership and the progress he helped drive, and I’m confident Jon will continue that work,” said Governor Walz. “As a trusted leader at MNIT for more than a decade, Jon has played a key role in building the strong technology foundation Minnesota relies on – strengthening cybersecurity, modernizing our systems, and delivering reliable digital services for Minnesotans.” 

MNIT provides enterprise technology services for Minnesota’s executive branch agencies, supporting cybersecurity, digital services, and statewide technology infrastructure. Eichten has served in multiple leadership roles at MNIT since joining the agency in 2012. Most recently, Eichten served as MNIT’s Deputy Commissioner, where he oversaw MNIT’s enterprise business operations, agency partner relationship management, and MNIT’s agency-based software application services.

After four years as a staff member in the Minnesota Senate, Eichten served as MNIT’s Government Relations Director for six years following the passage of the State’s IT consolidation law, crafting policy and budget proposals to drive IT consolidation forward and managing MNIT’s engagement with the Minnesota Legislature. Eichten stepped in as Deputy Commissioner in late 2018, where he worked closely with the Blue Ribbon Commission on Information Technology (now Technology Advisory Council) and the incoming Walz Administration to advance replacement of the MNLARS driver and vehicle service information system with a commercial, packaged software solution. 

As commissioner, Eichten will continue advancing the state’s work in cybersecurity, digital service delivery, systems modernization, and responsible technology innovation to serve Minnesotans.  

About Minnesota IT Services

Minnesota IT Services, led by the state’s Chief Information Officer, is the Information Technology agency for Minnesota’s executive branch, providing enterprise and local IT services to over 70 agencies, boards, and commissions. MNIT employs more than 2,800 people. Together, we build, maintain, and secure the State’s IT infrastructure, applications, projects, and services. MNIT sets IT strategy, direction, policies, and standards for enterprise IT leadership and planning. We also serve Minnesotans by connecting all 87 counties, 300 cities, and 200 public higher education campuses across the state on the MNET network. Through public-private partnerships, our team proactively protects the state’s information systems and the private data of 5.7 million Minnesotans. 

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