WIT Foundation President
Jannet Walker
Jannet Walker is the Vice President and National Fare Payments Practice lead for Hill International, a leading global management-consulting firm in the construction industry. Walker, a recognized industry leader and frequently sought after executive advisor has over 20 years of combined leadership, management consulting and information technology experience delivering technology and business solutions to the public and private sectors. She has provided executive level program and project management for the delivery of regional smart card fare payment systems for small, medium and large agencies in Atlanta, GA and the San Francisco Bay Area, California.
Walker was formerly the Vice President for First Data Corporation where she served as the national Transportation Practice Lead delivering innovative fare payment technologies and solutions to government agencies in transit, parking, and education and tolling. Prior to joining First Data, Walker was a Principal with Booz Allen Hamilton where she was responsible for leading the San Francisco Bay area and Southeastern state and local management consulting practices while serving as a trusted advisor and consultant to transit executives.
Walker also previously served as the Deputy General Manager (Executive Vice President) for the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. Prior to being appointed as Deputy General Manager, she served as MARTA’s Chief Information Officer & Assistant General Manager (Vice President) of Technology. During her tenure at MARTA, she provided leadership for some of the Authority’s most forward thinking technology initiatives including a $50 million business transformation program that upgraded MARTA’s business systems to a contemporary state and the design and installation of the Breeze Program, a $200 million state-of-the-art all smartcard based regional fare collection system which is the first in North America.
Walker obtained a Master’s of Science in Business Administration with a major in Management Information Systems and a Bachelor of Business Administration with a major in Management Information Systems. She has also completed significant coursework toward her Doctorate of Information Systems.
In 2006, the Technology Association of Georgia’s Women in Technology honored Walker as the Woman of the Year in Technology (Public Sector) and the NBMBAA named her the 2006 Outstanding MBA of the Year. She has also been continuously recognized as one of Atlanta’s Most Influential leaders by Who’s Who Publishing, honored by the Atlanta Business Journal as one of Atlanta’s Most Influential Women and named to the Atlanta Business League’s list of “Atlanta’s Top 100 Women of Influence.”
Walker is the current President of the WIT Foundation; the philanthropic arm of Women in Technology Inc. WIT is responsible for bringing awareness of Science, Technology and Math (STEM) studies and future career pathways to middle and high school young women.
Walker is also a member of the IT Senior Management Forum, Women’s Transportation Seminar, Commission of Minority Transportation Officials, Women Networking in Electronic Transactions, American Public Transportation Association and a lifetime member of the NBMBAA. Walker is an alumnus of the Eno Transportation Center for Transit Leadership Executive Development Program and the American Public Transportation Association’s Leadership APTA Program.
Walker was appointed to the spring 2007 Federal Transit Administration’s International Transit Studies Mission to Asia. The delegation met with transportations and government officials in Hong Kong and Beijing, China, Seoul, Korea and Kobe and Tokyo, Japan to examine state of operational readiness to deal with disasters and assessment of business continuity planning for IT and fare payment systems.
In 2008, Walker was selected to participate in the American Public Transportation Association’s Fare Payment Systems Mission to Asia to meet with government and transportation agencies in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Beijing. The delegation also meet with fare payment and open payment systems providers and consultants to examine current fare systems trends including smart card, open payment and Near Field Communications (NFC) systems.
Walker has been featured in a variety of publications, some of which include – CLIMB: Leading Women in Technology, Atlanta Business Chronicle, Atlanta Tribune, Black MBA Magazine, Atlanta Business Journal and Shape Magazine.