Brian Watkins

Chief Information Officer

N.C. Department of Transportation

Brian Watkins serves as the N.C. Department of Information Technology's chief information officer for the N.C. Department of Transportation.

He oversees a team of more than 600 employees and contractors and leads the planning, development and execution of strategic technology initiatives and goals for NCDOT. He is also responsible for developing and implementing a technology quality assurance program to ensure that the department's IT solutions are of the highest quality.

Watkins is a strong advocate for customer service and is dedicated to providing better IT solutions daily. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from many of years overseeing various IT leadership roles with the state.

He first joined NCDOT in 1999 as manager of Technical Services. Most recently, he served as NCDIT’s business relations and customer service director at NCDOT – a position he held from 2018 until he was named CIO in 2023. In this position, he developed an understanding of the department's needs as well as those of staff and external partners, enabling them to work together more effectively to achieve NCDOT’s mission, goals and objectives.

Previously, he worked as a forensics investigator with NCDOT's Investigations Unit of the Office of Inspector General and conducted electronic data investigations, including digital investigations and computer forensics, to detect fraud, waste, abuse and misconduct.

Watkins has a rich history of service, including four years in the U.S. Navy F-14 Squadron, where he specialized in weapons systems. He then transitioned to an IT career, where he has gained more than 33 years of experience.