About
As a former city hall staffer, Sari is deeply committed to helping busy city leaders find space to reflect, connect with peers, and tap their creativity to meet the urgent needs of residents. She values the Center’s unique role in creating conditions that allow city teams to step away from daily demands, learn alongside peers from other cities, and apply new ways of thinking to shared challenges.
In her current role, Sari oversees Data-Smart City Solutions’ programming for chiefs of staff and leads the lab’s emerging technology portfolio, which experiments with the use of generative AI to modernize performance management and expand residents’ access to city data for community advocacy.
Previously, Sari spent six years at the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, where she led the strategic development of city-centered programs, including the annual program for newly elected mayors and the Initiative’s Data and Innovation tracks. She also coached mayors on performance leadership to help them motivate and empower their teams. Before joining the Initiative, Sari served as Chief Data Officer for the city of Los Angeles under Mayor Eric Garcetti, executing his vision for a more inclusive, responsive, and data-informed city government.
Sari holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Brandeis University and a master’s degree in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley. In her free time, she enjoys hiking with her partner and kids, sewing, and scooping ice cream at her family’s cafe, Third Time Together.
