SEGMENT #2: Governments Achieve Greatness by Utilizing Technology.
By: Steve Hamill
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We are privileged to live in an age filled with exponential advancement in technology. People use technology on a daily basis in order to make their lives a little easier. Governments, like individuals, can greatly benefit from the ever increasing development of technological products and solutions.
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In the first article of the Great Government Series, I introduced the concept of improved operating results (“IOR”) and the role it plays in the path to achieving greatness. IOR refers to new knowledge, ideas, methods or innovations that have been used by one or more government agencies to increase productivity, reduce costs and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of operations, services and programs. Change is necessary to achieve IOR and the willingness to embrace technological change accelerates IOR.
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Every day, Great Governments are utilizing technology solutions to drive greater operational efficiency and effectiveness, reduce costs and protect their citizens and property. Cities, counties, states and school districts across the country are clearly embracing change and demonstrating IOR through the expanding use of technology.
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Great Government Series have incorporated technology to help reduce their energy output, which in turn saves them money. Idaho’s Coeur d'Alene School District has 10,000 students, 1,300 staff members and about 4,000 computer workstations. The School District implemented a Power Save system to turn off all computer monitors after five minutes of inactivity, and then to set the computers on standby mode after 90 minutes. This new system permits Coeur D’Alene to be more environmentally conscious and will save the School District an expected $300,000 over the course of three years.
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Data management is often a burdensome, time consuming and expensive task that nearly all government agencies are faced with. However, with new advancement in technology, governments are able to reduce costs and save time. Until 2008, Marin County, California, which is adjacent to San Francisco, managed its property tax system on an old software platform that was expensive to maintain and difficult to integrate with other systems. The County then implemented a Microsoft Windows based server to manage its property taxes and was able to reduce costs by 91 percent by eliminating hardware, software and maintenance costs.
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During this difficult economic crisis, many governments are faced with the tremendous need to cut spending. San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders has been a pioneer in adopting technology solutions in order to control costs and save money. Sanders was responsible for implementing the City’s new financial management system, which cut between $2 million to $3 million from the City’s budget. In addition, Mayor Sanders recently announced that the City will save $1.5 million a year by outsourcing its information technology support needs.
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Government agencies across the country are using innovative technologies to better protect local citizens. A number of city police departments have recently acquired and implemented ShotSpotter®, a gunshot detection system which uses audio sensors installed around the city to transmit the location of a recorded gunshot to police officers within the area. The City of Rochester, New York implemented the ShotSpotter system and was able to reduce gunshot activity by nearly 50%. Similarly, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has attributed a 40% reduction in homicide to the ShotSpotter system.
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The Port of Miami looked to government technology solutions provider, GTSI, to provide a web based physical security solution. The project provided a state‐of‐the‐art land and water‐based surveillance and protection system. The Port of Miami implemented GTSI’s innovative Technology Lifecycle Management (TLM) methodology to ensure its technologies, products, and systems are current, enabling them to stay ahead of emerging and unforeseen security threats and challenges.
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Throughout the United States, governments are embracing change and demonstrating efficient, effective, fiscally responsible and innovative ways of meeting their constituents’ needs. Utilizing technology is another great example of great governments driving change and achieving IOR.
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We view the Great Government Series as a collaborative and living effort. We welcome input from our government leaders and the public at large. If you have thoughts on great government or would like to share some examples of great government in your community, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact us at greatgovernment@uscommunities.org
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Steve Hamill is the former Assistant Chief Administrative Officer for Alameda County, California.
He is the General Manager of the U.S. Communities Government Purchasing Alliance (“U.S. Communities”), a non-profit government purchasing cooperative founded by and currently co-sponsored by the United State Conference of Mayors (USCM),
National League of Cities (NLC), National Association of Counties (NACo), Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) and the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP). U.S. Communities assists local and state government agencies, school districts (K-12), higher education, and nonprofits in reducing the cost of purchased goods by offering managed access to competitively solicited contracts between suppliers and lead public agencies.
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