The Santa Rosa Board of County Commissioners selected Adrian Lowndes of the Information Technology/GIS Department as the employee of the quarter for the first three months of 2016. Lowndes, who has the honor of being the very first recipient of this award, was selected from a pool of five candidates for his dedication to the county, drive to excel and desire to accept challenging projects.
Lowndes, a network and software engineer, has written more than 30 custom in-house software apps for the county’s various departments, saving taxpayers more than $2 million in software expenditures and maintenance costs. Many of these programs have greatly increased staff efficiency by automating time-consuming tasks previously performed by hand. He has also made working with the county much more friendly; a recent project allows local building contractors to access online permitting from their mobile devices. His work with the county’s voice over internet (VoIP) phone system alone has saved more than $300,000 in phone expenditures annually.
From overseeing more than 1,000 various types of county technology from desktop computers, tablets and servers to network equipment, printers and public Wi-Fi wireless network, Lowndes stays current with the ever-changing trends to keep the county systems running smoothly.
“Adrian’s skills are not limited to the computer department. He has always maintained a very positive and friendly attitude towards everyone,” said Jayne Bell, director of management and budget. “He is able to work under pressure and has always managed to solve stressful situations. He epitomizes all the good things in our department as well as our county. He is truly invaluable.
