Tool starts IT investment off right

It doesn't matter if a modernization program is managed well if it isn't the right investment to begin with, according to a leading government management consultant.

"The hardest decision an organization has to make is to decide to stop doing something," said Barry Calogero, executive vice president of business development at Robbins-Gioia Inc.

Calogero's firm introduced a tool Tuesday that can help government agencies steer clear of those tough decisions by making the right investments from the start.

Robbins-Gioia introduced its Portfolio Management Solution at the FOSE trade show in Washington, D.C., as a tool for agency chief information officers and chief financial officers to analyze the best mix of information technology investments to meet their performance goals.

"Most agencies don't fail because they picked the wrong [enterprise resource planning] package. The technology is all good. It's the business processes at the agency that make the difference," Calogero said.

Robbins-Gioia is offering its Portfolio Management Solution to help agencies comply with the Government Performance and Results Act, which requires agencies to demonstrate how they use their resources to meet performance goals set for the agency to improve service to taxpayers.

The Portfolio Management Solution is a combination of software tools that helps managers analyze potential investments and processes, which in turn helps managers determine desired outcomes and tradeoffs.

The solution forces agencies to look at the impact of an IT investment on other programs, said Patricia Davis-Muffett, the company's director of marketing. Robbins-Gioia is piloting the solution with the CIO at the Defense Logistics Agency.