Georgia Enterprise Technology Services (GETS) update, Vol. 5, Issue 6 (June 3, 2013)

GETS Update - June 3, 2013

Georgia Enterprise Technology Services (GETS) Update
Volume 5, Issue No. 6 June 3, 2013

Steady aim at a moving target
When our IT transformation began, we set out to reduce risk and update technology - some of it decades old - across the state enterprise. We set standards and aimed for common platforms where it made sense; e-mail was one of those areas where having a single platform made a lot of sense.
Working together, we have made tremendous progress in email transformation. In fact, in this issue of GETS Update, you'll find an article highlighting a major milestone in the project.
Even as we began working through migrations and upgrades, we knew that technology would not stand still or wait for us. We knew we would need to move with it.
As our agency customers, you told us that we must stay in step with the marketplace, and we are listening. An important component of our GETS+ initiative is the ability to provide continually evolving service offerings. E-mail is a prime example - rapidly changing technology has significantly broadened the options.
As we look ahead to how we will handle e-mail beyond transformation, cloud hosting has to be an option we strongly consider. Cloud-based e-mail has continued to win supporters, primarily because of its potential for cost savings. Migrating to the cloud can eliminate the need to maintain onsite e-mail servers and infrastructure. As offerings mature, concerns about security and availability are being addressed. We are working closely with IBM to explore the most promising approach. One possibility is Office 365, a cloudbased service offering that includes Exchange for e-mail, Lync for instant messaging, and SharePoint.
Our goal (with e-mail and other IT services) is to provide an enterprise solution that meets your needs and is technically sound, secure and reliable, and competitively priced. Certainly, much work is ahead of us, and I will keep you posted on our progress.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Calvin Rhodes State Chief Information Officer GTA Executive Director

In This Issue
Turn in unused PCs, save on costs E-mail transformation nears a milestone Backup and recovery reviews help keep routines current Briefly...
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Turn in unused PCs, save on costs
For agencies that buy computing services through the GETS program, end user computing services (that's PCs, network printers and common software) stand tall among IT service consumption considerations. These services, along with service desk support, are used by nearly all staff -- ample reason for agency IT and finance leaders to clearly understand what they're buying and be equipped to effectively manage how much they buy.
A key point for those agencies as emphasized at the May edition of the GETS Education Program: If you're not using a GETS PC, turn it in. In the GETS model, costs tie back to levels of service consumed. A GETS computer sitting unused in an agency closet somewhere may still incur cost. That's expense an agency can avoid, simply by turning the computer in.
As added incentive for shedding unneeded PCs, GTA announced at the May education session that no IMAC (install/move/add/change) charge will be levied for computers turned in from June 1 though June 30. An agency's GTA customer relationship manager (CRM) will serve as the coordination point for those arrangements.
A distinction between active and idle status for computers was also clarified at the May education session. This gains relevance when an agency opts not to turn in an unused PC (e.g., the employee who had used the PC retires and a replacement employee is expected soon). Agencies are encouraged in these cases to use the OrderNow! online Service Catalog to request that the PC be designated idle. This stops the support charges, though not the equipment use charges, associated with the PC. Only when the PC is returned to active status would support charges begin again.
Finally, GETS agencies are encouraged to always follow the IMAC process for end user computing changes. This practice promotes accuracy in asset management tracking and billing, as well as efficiency in EUC refresh and support services.
Monthly education program sessions scheduled in the summer months will key on GETS service areas including servers, storage and mainframe. The aim is to continue the push to equip GETS agencies with information they need to more effectively manage their IT service consumption and IT budgets.
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E-mail transformation nears a milestone
Another significant progress point for the GETS Program is at hand -- completion of the Outlook-to-Outlook e-mail upgrade portion of transformation. The upgrade involves agencies that were already using Outlook. The last of the Outlook-to-Outlook upgrades are wrapping up at DCH. The related Active Directory transitions at those agencies are already complete.
This achievement comes on the strength of carefully coordinated work not just by the e-mail upgrade team, but also by the agencies going through the upgrade, right down to individual agency staff. Many agency staff were asked to trim the size of their e-mailboxes in preparation for the upgrade. Some had to learn about creating and using pst files for e-mail storage. BlackBerry users had to organize the data on their devices to ready them for the upgrade. Many e-mail users had a new version of Outlook software to get acquainted with as well.
Of the many steps involved, some were inconvenient and some stretched patience. But collaboration allowed the upgrade to proceed, and the payoff is a more modern, reliable and better supported e-mail system for GETS agencies.
More e-mail upgrade work lies ahead. GETS agencies using GroupWise e-mail will convert to Outlook. That effort is under way at DNR and GDC. DBHDD, DHS and DPH will follow.
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Backup and recovery reviews help keep routines current
Data backups have parallels with insurance policies. In both, thinking you're covered is no substitute for being covered. So, it makes sense to periodically review your "coverage," and that's the aim of GETS backup and recovery review sessions being organized now.
The reviews will allow IBM backup and recovery teams to meet with agencies to validate a pivotal point -- data needed by agencies in backup is, in fact, backed up.
In some instances, backup routines that are no longer needed may be identified and subsequently discontinued. Additions may be made. In this regard the reviews align with GTA's broader GETS+ initiative to better equip GETS agencies to successfully manage their IT service consumption and IT budgets.
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Briefly...
The GeorgiaGov website recently won three 2013 Communicator Awards. The international awards program singled out the state of Georgia's official website in the categories of government website, copy/writing and visual appeal. This marks the third honor the site has earned since GTA's portal team, GeorgiaGov Interactive, completed the site redesign last year.

Participants at last month's GTA-hosted data management summit who completed event surveys reported overwhelmingly (96 percent) that they were pleased with the knowledge they gained about using data to make informed business decisions in state agencies. Attendees at the Government Runs on Data summit were challenged to make fuller use of their data and to collaborate with other state agencies in this regard to better serve the needs of Georgians.
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