An inside view: how to build a business case
New initiatives for federal IT investments face a rigorous process of planning and justification to obtain approval by the Office of Management and Budget. Here are some steps for making the case to OMB for funding for a 'ground zero' project, from Jim Kendrick, president of the P2C2 Group Inc. of Kensington, Md., based on his experience in helping agencies prepare Exhibit 300 business cases.
The funding equation starts at 300
Agencies used to give their IT business cases the casual treatment. 'A few years ago, agencies could fill out a 300 in a few days without doing their homework and get passing grades,' said management consultant Jim Kendrick, president of the P2C2 Group Inc. of Kensington, Md.
There's more to the game than knowing the rules
To win the funding game, you've got to know the rules. But knowing the rules isn't enough'there's much more to getting your IT initiative underwritten. Knowing the rules never hit a ground-rule double or put a 20-foot putt in the hole.
Contribute 3 puts users in the driver's seat
Though not as industrial-strength as some Web content management systems, Contribute from Macromedia Inc. of San Francisco has become a popular tool for fast, easy Web content management.
The lowdown on content management tools
Web content management software lets users publish documents and other material to the Web while keeping track of the data and maintaining control over format, rules and regulations.
Weaving a tighter web
HTML pages and Adobe Portable Document Format files aren't just the highly visible face of federal agencies anymore. Increasingly, they are the currency of internal and intra-agency communication, much of it driven by mandates for common enterprise architectures.
Linux development goes corporate
To ease policy-makers' concerns about potential legal and security trouble from agency use of the open-source Linux operating system, Linux kernel manager Andrew Morton recently told Senate staff members that most kernel modifications now come from corporations, not individuals.
NSF funds database gymnastics
The National Science Foundation has the urge to merge, at least when it comes to databases.
Louisiana takes a bite out of food stamp fraud
About 4 percent of Louisiana's $650 million food stamp program is eaten up by fraud each year.
Army recruits blues to green
The Defense Department last month approved the Army's plan to recruit hard-to-find IT experts and intelligence and imagery analysts, among other personnel, from the ranks of its fellow military services.
Internaut: Localities' dual-use projects will aid homeland security
State and local IT managers are far less excited than their federal counterparts about homeland security.
Boss alert
The House Government Reform Committee grades agencies on computer security once a year, but the U.S. Agency for International Development sends its managers a report card every month.
Feds have mixed views on value of academic credentials
To many government managers, on-the-job IT experience counts more than formal education. Yet they think a degree is a good predictor of ability.
Air Force tries a new way of buying
Lt. Col. Thomas L. Gaylord helps the Air Force buy smarter.
Another View: Emerging IT management roles
Increasingly, IT is being bought or deployed as a service. Applications software yields most value when shared as a service across an organization. Similarly, hardware is most productive when shared via storage area networks and utility computing.
Intelligence question
The Homeland Security Department had no sooner launched a terror threat warning in early August than news outlets such as National Public Radio trotted out this and that expert, criticizing the department. Either DHS was a) crying wolf or b) giving the terrorists too much insight into our national response to threats.
Incoming
The Defense Information Systems Agency recently finished the first round of the Defense Finance and Accounting System server consolidation project.
GAO points out challenges of building global info grid
The Defense Department's Global Information Grid'a massive IT infrastructure project'lacks an investment and oversight strategy. Plus, the department faces significant management, operational and technical challenges to pull it off, according to a Government Accountability Office report.
OPM retreats on E-Learning contract
The Office of Personnel Management last week wrote another chapter in its spotty procurement history, postponing a solicitation for the E-Learning project. Vendors had complained about the appearance of bias toward the incumbent contractors.
Biometrics on the front line
It's difficult for soldiers and Marines in Iraq to tell friendly residents from insurgents and terrorists, but biometric devices are helping them. Troops and intelligence analysts are using biometrics to hire and maintain an Iraqi workforce, protect military bases and monitor inmates at detention centers.
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