Archer’s predecessor, Gail Zaucha, left in March after holding the position since 2003. Last year Zaucha made $41.48 per hour, the lowest among the state’s 23 IT managers. That’s 31 percent less than Archer’s new pay rate.

Kraft said the comparison isn’t accurate because Archer’s new salary reflects both a general raise for state employees and a market rate raise that certain IT employees received, which Zaucha would have been eligible to receive this year.

Archer was selected for the position over other candidates, Kraft said, though he was not authorized to release the other names Wednesday.

He noted Archer’s 13 years of experience in administrative services at both the state and local level included the responsibility for the leadership, oversight, planning and project management aspects of government IT operations. That helped qualify her for the position, in addition to her experience overseeing the department’s IT operations since September and filling in for Zaucha since March and managing the department’s six IT staff positions.