Laboratory employees Jan Dye and Linda Lewis of Los Alamos' Communication Arts and Services Group and Kay Strong of the Training and Development Group were part of a task force that prepared a strategic plan for information technology that will serve as a blueprint for state government on information technology issues.
The partnership between Los Alamos and state government was put together in part by Rick Ulibarri of the Laboratory's Government Relations Office and Jim Hall, the state's chief information officer and a Laboratory affiliate in the Nonproliferation and International Technology Division.
"I think [the plan] recognizes that information technology and planning is an ongoing process," said Hall. "All too often information technology plans are something that you stick on a shelf."
The plan among other things defines the strategic direction state government will take when addressing technology infrastructure issues. An underlying goal of the plan is to make state government more accessible to the public, Hall added.
"The assistance from the Los Alamos professional staff was integral to creating a statewide strategic information technology plan that will be used in improving service delivery to the citizens of the state," said Hall. "We anticipate that this plan will be actively used by agencies in their planning and budgeting for the coming years.
"With the help of the Los Alamos staff, something that takes 12 to 18 months in other states to complete took us three months to complete," Hall added.
Ulibarri noted that in large governmental organizations like state government, agencies tend to develop information technology systems that are narrow in focus and are designed to meet the needs of their agency. As a consequence, there is no opportunity for agencies to cross-share systems.
A coordinated strategic plan for information technology will help state government find opportunities for cross sharing which in turn will make state government more customer focused, Ulibarri explained.
The Lab will work closely with the Governor's Science Advisor, Paul Cunningham of Los Alamos' Dynamic Experimentation Division Office, on information technology issues, Ulibarri added.
One hundred eighty people participated in focus group sessions, strategy and implementation workshops beginning last year in developing the strategic plan for information technology. "Information technology (IT) is a critical component of modern state government. As a key support element for service delivery in state government, [information technology] is increasingly the vehicle for direct delivery of state services," the plan states. "The purpose of this IT Strategic Plan is to assess the status of IT in New Mexico State Government; provide guidance for all branches of government, other state government entities, and decision-makers; and maximize the positive impacts of IT in delivering the best public services to the citizens of New Mexico at the lowest possible cost."
The goals of the Information Technology Strategic Plan are to
- establish a formal IT strategic planning process to give top managers and state government entities the broad strategic direction they need
- communicate how IT supports the strategic goals of state government
- communicate New Mexico State Government IT philosophy, goals, and performance objectives to managers and staff in all branches of government, other state government entities, citizens, and external organizations.
The plan was developed by a state government IT Strategic Plan Task Force that included the executive branch Chief Information Officer, the New Mexico Information Technology Management Project staff, representatives from the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state government, public education, higher education, the Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories.
"The completed strategic plan will enable the state to allocate resources more efficiently and will help to ensure that the expenditure of taxpayer funds will yield superior results throughout state government," Gov. Gary Johnson said of the plan. Referring to the Laboratory's contribution to the plan, Johnson added, "The professionalism demonstrated by the Information Technology Support Program staff added substantial value to the project's relevancy and quality. These individuals are a credit to Los Alamos National Laboratory."
In a related vein, New Mexico legislators in March approved House Bill 33 sponsored by Rep. Luciano "Lucky" Varela, D-Santa Fe - Gov. Johnson signed the bill into law effective July 1 - which will help state government with information technology issues by creating an Information Management Commission. This commission would consist of the cabinet secretaries of the state General Service and Finance departments and six people appointed by the governor. Two of the appointees will represent Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories. Hall, the state's chief information officer, would be chairperson of the commission. The bill also will require the state to develop a five-year strategic plan for state-funded information systems.
Ulibarri of Los Alamos' Government Relations Office said the Laboratory will continue assisting the state by working with the state's Information Services Division of the state General Services Department on a voice-of-the-customer survey. The survey will assess customer satisfaction with how state government delivers services, said Ulibarri.
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and Washington Group International for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.