IAC tells transition team about IT in government
The council recommends that the government be innovative as it takes advantage of what IT offers.
As the incoming Obama administration deals with two wars and a major
financial crisis, it must modernize the government in innovative ways,
according to new reports from the Industry Advisory Council.
“This
may sound simple, but it will require a new mind-set, a change in
leadership, improved management capabilities and different methods for
making [information technology] investment decisions,” according to one
of several IAC reports dated Dec. 11. “As it currently stands, the
government is resistant to change, taking risks and innovation.”
IAC’s
Transition Study Group met Dec. 12 with Obama’s transition team. IAC
said Obama's transition team is beginning to reach out to IT groups.
IAC’s study group is drafting papers on various IT topics, and it
presented four of these papers to the transition team. IAC said it will
provide all of its papers to Obama’s transition team in the next two
weeks.
In the four reports, IAC said the new administration must
overhaul the government’s policies and practices regarding IT and take
advantage of the annual $100 billion federal IT investment.
Officials must recognize the impact that the government's investment in IT has had on the U.S. economy, the group said.
It
added that the administration needs a senior IT leader in the Executive
Office of the President who will have strong decision-making authority.
The administration should build an identity management system, the
council said.
“The technology and know-how exists,” the group
said in one report. “It is now a matter of planning, coordination,
political will, resources, and a decision to act in concert with other
stakeholders.”
Also, the government has a major role in setting
up a consistent framework for identification programs, the group said.
It’s a complex task that will require sensitivity, a need for
innovation and technical expertise. The government also has to build
public support, particularly because many people disagree with a
national ID card, the council said.
The government’s strategy
must protect privacy and ensure accurate data, while reducing identity
theft and securely sharing information between organizations, IAC said.