Georgia Technology Authority (GTA) update [Vol. 6, Issue 6 (June 4, 2014)]

Georgia Technology Authority (GTA) Update
Volume 6, Issue No. 6 June 4, 2014

Changing for the better -GETS services integration
Work continues in earnest on our GETS services integration initiative (SII) -- an effort to improve GETS program service delivery, innovation and flexibility by focusing on process improvement and integration among our IT service providers.
A key SII component involves separating service coordination from service execution to promote accountability and control. Coordination duties will be performed by a new service provider called a multisourcing services integrator (MSI). The MSI will shoulder certain responsibilities currently woven into our infrastructure and managed network services contracts. That would include driving standards, documenting inventory and writing process documents and operating level agreements to guide service provider performance. These are not new services to GETS, but they will be handled a new way.
We start with a series of related procurements for an MSI and for managed network services (MNS). MNS may be further separated into service areas (e.g., wide area network, local area network, voice). We anticipate having providers for these services in place and serving GETS customers by July 2015.
During the past month, we initiated both the MSI and MNS procurements and engaged with an eager and competitive marketplace. The first step involved issuing a request for qualified contractors (RFQC) for the MSI and MNS. We received responses from multiple providers. We have subsequently identified three qualified MSI service providers to move forward into the request for proposal stage. We are in the process of reviewing MNS RFQC responses.
Recently we met with the potential MSI service providers to hear their ideas about solutions and their experiences performing this kind of work for other customers. I'm pleased to say that in all cases their comments built our confidence the services integration model we're pursuing is the right approach to best serve the needs of GETS agencies.
Development of the MSI request for proposal (RFP) is under way. It's a painstaking process. Team members are working diligently to ensure the RFP makes allowance for the flexibility and agency input toward service delivery we all want for the GETS program. Having agency representatives working side-by-side with us on this, expressing their needs and expectations, has been critical to effectiveness. It's demanding work, and I thank those agency representatives (and members of my own team) for their continuing commitment, time and insights.
Looking ahead to when we carefully introduce these changes to GETS over the next two years, we will maintain the original goals of the GETS program and the benefits of an enterprise shared services model -- contracting at a statewide level to benefit from economies of scale, leveraging private sector expertise, maintaining reliability and security standards, and ensuring both agency and enterprise needs are addressed. Thank you for your ongoing support.

In This Issue
Transformation projects show new traction Phones by the thousands updated across GETS agencies Digital enterprise summit materials accessible online Online service manuals help agencies manage consumption Briefly... (security reviews)
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Calvin Rhodes State Chief Information Officer GTA Executive Director

Transformation projects show new traction
The hard work of GETS teams and affected agencies to create and execute updated transformation plans is paying dividends in the form of solid progress with several ongoing projects. The pressure is still on to finish the work promptly. And, there are welcome indications of traction, from Windows 7 upgrades to print services, email migration and server consolidation.
The Windows 7 upgrade team, for example, has passed the halfway point in its trek to implement up-to-date operating systems on all of the 33 thousand personal computers in the GETS environment. The team hit its enterprise targets for upgrades in May, keeping it on path to wrap up its work by August of this year.
The server consolidation (SCON) effort got a boost in early May with the successful migration of a set of DNR servers to the state's North Atlanta Data Center. User testing continues ahead of DBHDD and GBI server migrations, expected later this year. And revised SCON project plans are being reviewed and agreed with the several remaining GETS agencies to tackle the ambitious consolidation work.
File services work continues toward a December 2014 completion target. And email migration proceeds at agencies currently using GroupWise email. A broad goal remains of wrapping up as much of the transformation program as possible in 2014, with expectation some SCON work will extend into mid 2015.
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Phones by the thousands updated across GETS agencies
GTA, through its vendor partner AT&T, puts the finishing touches this spring on a wide-reaching update of state agencies' telephone systems. Across the GETS enterprise, this voice refresh project means more modern, reliable and serviceable phone systems to support the work of GETS customer agencies.
The numbers are eye-popping. Individual phone replacements over the last four years, 52,420. Refresh of just shy of 600 key systems, as well as 34 PBX phone systems. Couple the new equipment and systems with the extensive network improvements (also performed by AT&T) implemented through GETS initiatives, and it adds up to an invigorated network communications system for Georgia's state government.
Even with completion of this enterprise-wide voice services refresh, GETS agencies may continue to request updates to their phones and phone systems as need arises. Requests would now be made by agencies via the OrderNow! online Service Catalog, rather than being initiated by AT&T contacting agencies.
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Digital enterprise summit materials accessible online
Whether you attended last month's GTA-hosted Technology Summit or not, you now have a second shot at capitalizing on information presented at the May 5th session. Presentations as well as program details from this year's Digital Remodeling for Better Citizen Access event are accessible on the 2014 Technology Summit webpage.
Event presenters and sponsors including Amazon Web Services, Deloitte, EY, HP, IBM, Salesforce.com and others have generously contributed their presentations. Taken together, these materials illustrate a key theme of the digital enterprise summit -- state and local government must be ready to enhance citizen access to services through innovative use of new technology and updated business processes.
You will also find on the summit webpage materials from keynote speaker David Behen, state of Michigan CIO. In his remarks he emphasized the importance of state government accommodating customers who, in today's digital era, have come to expect access to services nearly 'round the clock and from anywhere. His presentation includes illustrations of how Michigan is meeting the growing demand for customercentric government.
For the 175 Georgia state and local government staff members and vendor representatives who attended the summit, and for all interested in improving services for Georgians, the digital enterprise presentations offer insights into rethinking the way we do business so we can serve our customers the way they want to be served.
Finally, see the "Strategy Cycle Overview" presentation describing the annual IT strategic planning cycle promoted by GTA. It illustrates how the annual technology summit and IT strategy summit, also hosted by GTA, are designed to serve Georgia's state and local government entities.
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Online service manuals help agencies manage consumption
To help customer agencies manage their consumption of GETS services, GTA provides a set of how-to manuals for the various service types, or service towers. Each of these service manuals includes an overview of the service, the resource units billed to cover service cost, best practices in managing service consumption, and step-by-step directions for adding, removing, or changing service in the GETS environment.
Newly formatted on the GTA website for ease of use, GETS service manuals are available for the following:
-- end user computing (EUC) -- servers -- storage -- mainframe computing -- voice -- local area network / wide area network
The manuals serve as another resource to allow agencies visibility into their costs and effective management of service volumes to fit their needs and budgets.
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Briefly...
The Office of Information Security (OIS) within GTA's Enterprise Governance and Planning division recently conducted security program reviews with GETS fullservice agencies, focusing on each agency's security management practices. The objective is to help Georgia agencies bolster their information security and risk management programs, bettering the security stature of the agency and the state as a whole. See GTA's OIS webpage for details of this and other OIS services, including cyber preparedness, cyber incident management, security consulting and training programs.
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We welcome your comments about service delivery, the state's IT transformation and related topics.
You can submit comments online or call our toll-free number to leave a recorded message.