David Johnson: Guiding Tech-Driven Change in the City of Austin

From Quiet Beginnings to Tech Leadership

David Johnson didn’t grow up in a big city or attend elite prep schools. He was raised on a generational farm in southern Oklahoma by his grandparents. Life was simple, but not always easy.

“I didn’t realize we were poor until I had to go on the school lunch program,” Johnson recalls. “We grew our own food. The vegetables came from our garden or were canned from the summer before.”

Those early lessons in resourcefulness and grit shaped his path. Over time, he went from a kid helping raise cattle to leading technology for one of the largest water utilities in the country.

Climbing the Tech Ladder the Hard Way

Johnson took an unconventional path into IT. He didn’t get his college degree until later in life, graduating from Covenant College in 2010. But long before that, he was already deep in enterprise systems.

He started with American Airlines in Fort Worth in 1989, managing their IT data center. “I helped build out the SAP infrastructure that would later support their core systems,” he says. That role gave him early exposure to large-scale tech rollouts and mission-critical systems.

From there, he moved into managed services. At Solid Systems in Houston and Deloitte & Touche Outsourcing in Philadelphia, Johnson helped run IT for external clients — gaining skills in vendor management and hybrid IT delivery models.

ERCOT and the Power Grid Challenge

In 2003, he took on a high-stakes role at ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. As Director of IT Operations, Johnson helped build systems that supported over 35 million daily transactions for the state’s power grid.

“Texas was just coming into deregulation,” he says. “I worked on market task forces that shaped how technology would support the new model.”

He also implemented ITIL-based service management, helping ERCOT resolve audit issues and improve system integrity.

Smart Grids and Smarter Cities

Next came a move to EPB in Chattanooga, where Johnson served as Vice President and CIO for over a decade. There, he helped build one of North America’s first fully automated electric grids — a major milestone in utility technology.

“Working with national labs and cutting-edge vendors, we took ideas from paper to production,” Johnson says. “That grid set a new bar for uptime and automation.”

He also led the construction of over 10 high-availability data centers, pushed forward “big data” analytics handling 20 billion points per year, and adopted early cloud platforms like AWS and Azure.

Austin Proud: Tech in the Public Sector

In 2021, Johnson returned to Texas to take on a new challenge—serving as a CIO based in Austin. He brought with him years of private-sector experience into the public utility space.

“I had to learn to navigate the pace and transparency of government work,” he says. “But the mission was the same: build resilient, scalable systems that serve people.”

He led enterprise-wide digital transformation, managed sensitive data compliance (HIPAA, PCI, PII), and modernized ERP and HRIS systems. Johnson also pushed for a hybrid cloud strategy to support flexibility and business continuity.

Leadership and Lessons Learned

For Johnson, success isn’t just about delivering projects — it’s about leading people.

“As an introvert, my biggest challenge was learning how to engage,” he shares. “I had to realize looking people in the eye wasn’t a sign of aggression. Most people mean well.”

He’s proudest of his leadership record. Over the last 11 years, he retained 100% of his key technical staff. He credits that to mentoring, clear goal setting, and transparency.

“You lead people, not manage them,” he says. “That means being honest about what’s possible, setting priorities, and giving others the tools to grow.”

A Broader Impact Beyond Tech

Johnson’s leadership goes beyond IT. He’s served on advisory boards at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga State, and for the United Way. He’s also on the board for the Abundant Life Children’s Home in Texas.

In his personal time, he’s still connected to his roots — helping manage the family farm and staying involved with the Masonic Flora Lodge in Quitman, TX.

 Lessons from a Lifetime in Tech

When asked what drives him, David Johnson is clear: “I want to give my family the security I didn’t always have growing up. And I want to build things that matter — that help communities.”

His story is a reminder that tech leadership isn’t just about certifications or coding. It’s about persistence, vision, and staying grounded.

“I set my goals based on what the organization needs,” he says. “Then I knock out the quick wins, so I can focus on the big ones.”

From a childhood on the farm to leading enterprise systems across the U.S., David Johnson shows that where you start doesn’t define where you can go — but how you lead, always does.

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