Elrich Appoints New Procurement Director and Three Assistant Chief Administrative Officers

For Immediate Release: Monday, March 4, 2019

Pictured (l to r) are: Shetty; Sturgis; Fletcher; and Hochberg. The ACAOs will assist Chief Administrative Officer Andrew Kleine in supervising the daily operations and performance of County government and its departments and agencies. See release for more information.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has appointed Ash Shetty as director of the County’s Office of Procurement. Elrich also named Alfred Fletcher II, Adriana Hochberg, and Caroline Sturgis as new assistant chief administrative officers (ACAO).

All four appointments required County Council approval.

“These highly qualified appointments further my vision for a more equitable and inclusive Montgomery County that will create a brighter and more prosperous future for everyone,” said Elrich. “I decided early on that I would not surround myself with mirrors – because mirrors lie. You end up seeing what you want to see. And, I don’t want to see what I want to see, I want to see a more accurate picture so I can get to the challenges at hand. I want to make sure that the people coming into my administration have a diversity of views and expertise in areas that I don’t have; and I am grateful the County recognized the talents of these appointees.”

Elrich seeks a County government led by people who are ambitious, ethical, inclusive, and innovative. A brief background sketch of each of the above appointees, and their respective responsibilities in their new positions is provided below.

Ash Shetty

Since 2010, Shetty has worked directly with procurement heads of large organizations on initiatives that would be part of his new role as the director of the Office of Procurement. He has overseen spend analyses to identify high risk and high criticality vendors at several large organizations including Fortune 100 companies. He holds an MBA from Georgetown University.

Alfred Fletcher II

Fletcher is the former deputy director of the Department of Small and Local Business Development in Washington, D.C. since 2018, and chief of staff for the same jurisdiction’s Department of General Services prior to that. He holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Phoenix. He is also a 2016 graduate of President Obama’s Leadership Workshop. ACAO areas of responsibility include A Growing Economy and A More Affordable and Welcoming County.

Adriana Hochberg

Hochberg joins the County from Washington, D.C. where she was chief of staff for the District’s Department of Energy and Environment. Prior to that she was a program analyst for the District’s Office of the City Administrator. Hochberg earned a master’s in Public Policy from Harvard University. ACAO areas of responsibility include A Greener County and Easier Commutes.

Caroline Sturgis

Sturgis comes to Montgomery County from Baltimore City where she developed an extensive fiscal background during her tenure as the deputy budget director for the city’s finance department and prior to that served as the director of fiscal services and later Chief Financial Officer for the city’s police department. She earned an MBA from Nova Southeastern University. ACAO areas of responsibility include Safe Neighborhoods and Thriving Youth and Families.

The procurement department’s role is to preserve the public trust and ensure the integrity of the public procurement process through the efficiency and effectiveness of the procurement of goods, services, and construction in accordance with best practices; resulting in the highest value for County government and its residents.

The ACAOs will assist Chief Administrative Officer Andrew Kleine in supervising the daily operations and performance of County government and its departments and agencies. Fariba Kassiri will become the deputy chief administrative officer to more accurately reflect her additional areas of responsibility which include Effective and Sustainable Government.

Elrich has launched a national search to fill other key leadership roles in his administration. The remaining positions to be filled include the directors of Department of Health and Human Services; Housing and Community Affairs; Montgomery County Public Libraries; Office of Human Resources; Office of Public Information; and the County’s Chief of Police. Those nominations will also have to be confirmed by the County Council.

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Media Contact: Ohene Gyapong, 240-777-6507