Pat Shier was appointed as Director of Enterprise Technology Services effective April 1, 2011. He is an experienced manager with strong communication, financial management and leadership skills.
Prior to joining ETS, Pat managed the Division of Retirement & Benefits where he emphasized innovation and refinement of the employer and member services sections of the Division: Retirement, Benefits (health and life), Information Services, Accounting and Administrative Support. He received the Denali Award for Individual Leadership in 2009. Earlier in his State career, Shier was the Deputy Director of the Employment Security Division for two years in the Department of Labor & Workforce Development. During his tenure at Labor, Shier was also Chief of Unemployment Insurance Tax, serving over 17,000 Alaska employers. His initial position with the State, in 1988, was as an auditor. During his state service, Shier has been elected to the Executive Board of ASEA/AFSCME Local 52 in 1992, serving in health plan oversight and advisory roles for both the general government and supervisory units until early 2007.
Shier was born in Fairbanks. He attended Washington State University and the University of Alaska Fairbanks, studying accounting. Having grown up around some of the aviation greats of Alaska, he became hooked on flying at an early age and has continued his private pilot avocation. He contributes both time and piloting expertise to the Civil Air Patrol on a routine basis.
In the private sector, Shier has worked in the banking, insurance, and utility industries, in Fairbanks as well as Juneau.