Her Story
About Tamecka
Tamecka McKay is an executive IT leader with 27 to 28 years of experience in the public sector. She most recently served as Chief Information Officer for the Seminole Tribe of Florida, where she oversaw a team of 116 responsible for all technology and digital services serving over 4,000 tribal members and 3,000 employees. In that role, she represented technology at the executive level and bridged business operations with technology. Previously, she served as Chief Information Officer for the City of Fort Lauderdale. During her tenure there, she led the response to a major flood event that required evacuating technology services with only 24 hours notice and successfully modernized the city's aging infrastructure, including replacing a 50-year-old ERP system, in less than two years. Tamecka holds an associate's degree, a bachelor's degree in technology management from Broward College, and a master's degree in public administration from Florida International University. She began a PhD program at Florida International University but paused it upon her promotion to CIO. She volunteers on a number of boards and attributes her success to her faith, family support, and determination. Tamecka is passionate about leveraging technology to improve quality of life and emphasizes servant leadership and community engagement.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Tamecka
01What do you attribute your success to?
My faith would be a big part of it. Supporting family would be another part of it. And then the third would just be determination, you know, not accepting no answer. Not accepting society's definition of what you should be doing, or how you should be.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Don't take it personal. Staying humble. And staying hungry.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Get a mentor. Don't be afraid to volunteer for things, even if you don't feel like you have all of the requirements. And get comfortable being uncomfortable, because all growth happens outside of that comfort zone.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The challenge is the technology world with artificial intelligence and the sprawl of technology changing so fast, keeping up and staying abreast as a leader. But it's also an opportunity to bring impact to underserved communities impacted by the digital divide, and for women and non-technical people to bridge the gap between technical and non-technical personnel to align technology with business goals.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
In my work, I would say integrity. And in my personal life, I would say my faith.
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