During his nearly 30-year corporate career, Jeff Oker has been deeply involved in public service, most recently serving as a key member of the state's Workforce Development Council, whose mission is to match jobs with industries that will drive Connecticut's future economic growth.
Now Oker is looking to move into the public sector.
Hartford Mayor Arunand Arulampalam this week appointed Oker as director of the City Development Services Agency, responsible for developing the city's economic development strategy and the new mayoral administration, now in its sixth month.
Oker, most recently an executive at downtown Hartford tech giant Infosys, joins City Hall at a time when the city needs to reduce tax burdens for both businesses and homeowners, get the revitalization of the downtown and neighborhoods back on track after a pandemic-induced setback and address downtown office vacancy rates that have hit a 35-year high as COVID-19 changes the time employees spend at work.
Oker, 54, said his role leading Infosys' digital and innovation efforts naturally leads him to be involved in workforce development and his work with the Connecticut Governor's Workforce Council, as well as his role as chair of ReadyCT, a statewide nonprofit dedicated to closing the achievement gap for all Connecticut students.
Auker, the development services director, believes his background is essential to driving the city's economic revitalization.
“I thought it was an opportunity to really get in the running,” Oker said, “to really work shoulder to shoulder with the people who are building the city, building the community around here and developing the future workforce, which is going to be the foundation for everything we do from an economic development standpoint.”
“This shows companies that we're serious about retaining our workforce, training that workforce and adapting to evolving technology,” Oker said.
The foundations for this vision are already taking shape, with more than 3,000 new apartments built in and around downtown over the past decade, and more planned for construction in nearby neighborhoods.
Housing is seen as essential to attracting younger workers to cities like Hartford and is a consideration when employers contemplate relocating or expanding.
Additionally, Strides is helping to rebuild a vibrant restaurant, bar and entertainment scene, especially around historic Pratt Street downtown. These efforts are important not only for workforce development but also for attracting tourists to Hartford.
Arulampalam said it was “remarkable” that Aukar was leaving the private sector to bring his background in technology and strategic leadership to the city.
“Jeff is in charge. [the department of development services] “He will be focused on innovation and growth across our great region for the benefit of Hartford families and businesses,” Arulampalam said. “His track record of driving digital transformation and empowering communities will be instrumental in building Hartford's prosperous future.”
Oker will succeed I. Charles Matthews, who retired from the city in December when former Mayor Luke Bronin's term ended. Oker's appointment is subject to approval by the City Council.
He will be paid $152,000.
Mark Mirko/Hartford Courant
Jeff Auker, who was named new development director for the city of Hartford, previously held several roles at Hartford Financial Services Group, a major employer in the city. (Courant file photo)
Oker's work history also includes stints at accounting giant PwC and Hartford Financial Services Group, a property and casualty insurance company headquartered in Hartford and a major employer in the city.
Aukar's corporate experience is seen as a valuable asset for the Arulampalam Municipal Corporation in building relationships with employers in the city.
But Oker will not only have to navigate Hartford's complicated political landscape, he will also have to forge new relationships with the city's diverse ethnic and racial communities.
Oker, who recently finished raising his family of five, said he and his wife, Eliza, a corporate recruiter, plan to move to the city from Coventry soon, even though local regulations require general managers to live in Hartford.
A graduate of Brown University with a doctorate in philosophy (mind, language and science), Oker said he enjoys hiking, camping and playing live music.
Below is a summary of our conversation with Auker, edited for length and clarity.
Q: What do you bring to the city’s efforts to become a hub of 21st century innovation, particularly as it relates to financial services and insurance?
answer: “Insurance and financial services have always been at the core of what we do. Companies have earned their reputations. It's a big driver of our economy. Here in The Hartford, we're really focused on insurance and financial services.”
We have manufacturing all across the state, and there's a big opportunity here for precision manufacturing. And then, obviously, insurance companies want data more than anybody else. So there are some technology aspects that we can really leverage here.
We need to look at what is emerging, but we can't do everything, so we need to set out some pillars.
Q: What is the biggest public policy issue that comes to you as you enter this new job?
answer: We must have a sustained team and mechanisms to work quickly, rationally and aggressively on some of the key economic development items and expand the Grand List and so on.
To achieve that, we need to do it in a few key ways. First, we can't do it at the expense of the ease of doing business with us. We can't grow too rapidly. Already, Connecticut and Hartford are not among the best in the nation for services offered.
So we want to be, and I say this directly from the mayor, the easiest city for businesses to do business in. We have a key role to play. [in city government] As we add people to our team, I hope that people in economic development, planning and zoning say, “Hartford is the right place for me to learn, contribute and advance my career.”
We don't just fill open roles, we fill roles with people who bring energy and vitality.
From an economic development perspective, the key thing I need to learn more about is that we need to stay true to the region. We need to stay true to the culture that we have here. We have a lot of diversity. It's a great blessing, but it does make things a little more complicated in terms of management.
Q: How do you address the reality and reputation of a slow, inconsistent and frustrating licensing, permitting and inspection process?
answer: My time in consulting was primarily focused on customer experience and development in complex and highly regulated industries like healthcare. [the city’s] Everyone's systems are different, everyone's urgency is different, there's lots of things you can look into.
Like the approval period for certain things, if something is approved on the last day of the cycle, then we take it over 30, 40, 60 days later, etc. We're going to move that up by 15 days. So there are things that we are mandated to do, and it's our job, basically, to execute on them.
On the technology side, there are some very powerful things that can be done to organize the data that makes up a city's history, especially in development. There's the potential to use AI, but it's not a reliable source of information, and it's better than sifting through 15 years of zoning minutes.
If there is something that is not working and it is causing a lot of problems, you have the right to ask for resources if you can show that you have done everything you can to avoid that problem. Define what is missing and find someone to fill that role or someone to coordinate other roles.
Obviously, this requires approval and there are checks and balances in place for a reason, and I don't want to sound as if I have all the answers.
Q: How do you view the challenge of high office vacancy rates downtown?
answer: From a real estate and investment approach, there is still a lot to learn, but the mixed-use approach seems to be moving in the right direction.
I don't see companies ever going back to working in an office the way they used to, but I truly believe that when it comes to the most junior people in an organization, the benefits of being in the office with their peers are immense — they can ask each other the right questions and have the right mentors.
Q: How would you describe your style?
answer: Cautious optimist. My first reaction to things is usually “let's fix it.”
We can all agree that this is the right thing to do, but here are the resources currently available and the priorities.
We want to help people keep moving forward and not lose ideas.
I'm very collaborative, so I have no problem saying things I don't know, and even if I think I know, I'm happy for people to point that out, because none of this is decided by one person; there are many people who need to collaborate.
Kenneth R. Gosselin can be reached at kgosselin@courant.com.
