She will begin her work with the city on June 1.
In the new role, Erp will be managing the city's Information Security Office, where she will be responsible for executing the citywide information security program, which involves "safeguarding the city's information, data and technology infrastructure," according to a city press release.
“I am excited about moving the city of Austin information security program to the next level to further mature the system by collaborating citywide and engaging departmental participation to leverage resources, increase knowledge, and expand our incident response capabilities,” Erp said in the release.
Erp is described as a "seasoned information security professional with more than 20 years of experience leading large organizations" and a track record in solutions for meeting security requirements compliance and building "cybersecurity operations centers for real-time monitoring, threat response and breach prevention."
Most recently, Erp worked as a cybersecurity director and advisor at accounting firm KPMG. She also previously worked as CISO for the Health and Human Services Commission of Texas, the assistant CISO for the University of Texas system, and has worked in the past in a variety of roles for public and private entities alike, like Hertz and the city of San Antonio, according to her LinkedIn.
“I’m very happy to have Shirley join our team. Her experience is a powerful asset to the work we do to protect our information security and risk management efforts,” Assistant City Manager Rey Arellano said in a statement.
Erp obtained her bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Central Oklahoma and her master's degree in technology management from Texas A & M University-Commerce.
