| | November 201619CIOReviewSo the cloud-based solution was ultimately what the ACSC endorsed when the decision went to the ITESC. And ITESC members, understandably, had many of the same cost concerns that IT directors had. But the ITESC members didn't have to just take my word for it. They knew their IT directors had already hammered on these questions, and had arrived at a consensus recommendation, which the ITESC approved. The depth of buy-in this two-stage process generates in agencies is absolutely worth the effort of bringing important decision items to the ACSC first.We have several other governance groups that conduct important preliminary analyses for the ITESC. Our successful ERP project, STAR (State Transforming Agency Resources), was implemented during the past two years, despite its extensive scopeSTAR replaced 140-plus systems with one comprehensive system. The key to an accelerated ERP implementation is minimizing customizations, and the STAR Decision Council, consisting primarily of agency division administrators, reviewed any customization requests, as well as other major configuration decisions, prior to them being advanced to the ITESC. Ultimately, the ITESC determined only three customizations to the off-the-shelf software were justifiable for business reasons, thanks to the Decision Council's earlier research and evaluations.Likewise, we have an eGovernment Business Management Team (EBMT) that provides oversight for the state of Wisconsin's self-funded portal contract and advises the ITESC on the annual eGovernment business plan, as well as any decisions about applications that might collect fees. Since the state's partnership with its self-funded portal vendor began in 2013, the eGovernment program has designated more than 70 applications for development, and 50 are currently in production.Even with the advance analysis of enterprise IT issues done by the ACSC and EBMT, I am still amazed at the level of follow-up questions and investigation the ITESC members ask of me and my staff. I often compare the circuitous deliberations of the ITESC to those of a trial jury. But I understand that is how the process should work, and I truly enjoy working with a governance team at this level. I respect their conscientiousness, and I know their ultimate decision will have impact and drive our IT investments.Once I get a "Yes" from the ITESC, then I get to work with state employees on the execution, and their focus and determination to implement never fails to energize me, project after project. It's the most fulfilling aspect of my job. We have the "Yes" now from the ITESC for Voice over IP, Unified Communications, Office software in the cloud, and a document management solution that integrates with STAR. We're digitizing old paper-based systems and enabling analytics. State employees will be able to work together, and work productively, in ways never before possible.All of this is on track, however, because we didn't try to short-circuit the governance process. The time we put in up front with governance teams ensures these implementations won't get interrupted or have to go back to square one. And employees know the end result will be a great environment in which to do their jobs, and they will have efficient and powerful tools to serve both internal and external customers. That is what state service was always meant to be, and it's a privilege to work with both managers and staff to help make this transformation happen. Adaptive Leadership reflects our ability to ensure the state's technology investment strategies match the top policy priorities of the Governor and LegislatureDavid Cagigal
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