Personnel note: Nikki Fried promotions highlight department diversity

Shahra Lambert, Eric Brown, Erin Moffet

Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried announced a series of promotions Tuesday morning, including several key director positions.

Eric Brown will serve as Chief Information Officer, Shahra Lambert as Director of Strategic Initiatives and Erin Moffet as Director of Federal Affairs.

“It gives me great pleasure to announce the promotion of three exceptional FDACS employees to new roles in our department,” Fried said.

“These appointments also affirm our commitment to a diverse, inclusive department that promotes talented people of color and women. I have full confidence in these phenomenal members of our FDACS family to deliver great results for Florida’s farmers, families, and consumers.”

Lambert will fill a position previously held by Lisa Conti, a long-time Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services leader who died earlier this month.

Conti, who also served as chief science officer under Fried and former Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, fought cancer for years but remained engaged in her post until shortly before her death.

Lambert takes over the Strategic Initiatives directorship.

“Shahra has been an extraordinary advocate for Florida agriculture at the federal level, and will become our department’s innovation driver and strategic thought leader,” Fried said.

Fried initially hired Lambert in 2019 as Southwest Florida regional director, and she later moved into the post of director of Federal Affairs. Before joining Fried’s officer, as worked for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson as African-American outreach director and as a regional director for Pinellas, Pasco and Hernando counties. She previously worked in former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham’s Tallahassee office as a consumer advocate. The Florida State University and Mercer University grad also served as Nelson’s political director for his Senate campaign, and worked in the same capacity for President-elect Joe Biden’s Florida campaign.

Brown moves into the CIO post after previously working as Chief Technology Officer and Deputy Chief Information Officer within FDACS’ Office of Agriculture Technology Services. He will take over from retiring CIO Craig Vollertsen, following a national search.

“Eric has been at the helm of a digital transformation having served as our Chief Technology Officer, and will oversee the continued modernization of our information technology landscape,” Fried said.

Brown previously worked for 12 years in the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, rising to bureau chief of service operations. He also worked in the Department of Children and Families in IT. The Florida A&M grad in the private sector services as chief innovation officer and as a consultant in PerformantCx.

Moffett succeeds Lambert in federal affairs, where she has served as DeputyDirector since March 2019.

“Erin has done an outstanding job representing our department’s priorities and the needs of Florida’s $137 billion agriculture industry before Congress, The White House, and federal agencies, and will continue doing so in leading our Federal Affairs efforts.

Moffett worked in Congress advising U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, a Tampa Democrat, on cannabis policy and serving as communications director. Before then, she held various communications and policy roles working Florida members of Congress including Alcee Hastings, Lois Frankel and Patrick Murphy. The John Hopkins University and Elon University graduate also worked on U.S. House campaigns for Crist and Murphy.