Duriya Farooqui, MPA
Chief Operating Officer
City of Atlanta
Kennedy School at Harvard University
As chief operating officer for the city of Atlanta, Farooqui manages and oversees all of the city’s operating departments and related agencies. The departments include aviation, police, fire, corrections, parks, recreation and cultural affairs, planning and community development, public works and watershed management. She also oversees the departments of human resources, procurement, information technology, sustainability and enterprise assets. Appointed by Mayor Kasim Reed, Farooqui is the youngest person to serve as Chief Operating Officer for Atlanta, the first Asian American and the third woman to hold the position. She has led major Reed Administration initiatives across the city to drive results in public safety, service delivery and improved operations across city agencies including Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, the busiest airport in the world. Farooqui is responsible for the management of more than 7,000 city employees and operations that span an annual budget of more than $2 billion.
