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Provide the strategic vision and resource deployment at the Enterprise level, acting as a change agent and principal integrator of the County’s Information Technology mission and technical capability;
Define the Enterprise-level architecture and facilitate the flow of information between County departments, outside organizations and citizens;
Create IT policy and standards that are binding upon the entire enterprise;
Manage the governance structure including: 1) develop Enterprise IT policy, standards and directions; 2) facilitate standards which provide direction and overall lowest total cost of ownership; 3) establish security principles and guidelines; 4) develop and facilitate management of Communities of Business; and 5) resolve issues between Communities of Business and/or Departments;
Encourage funding models that facilitate infrastructure development and Communities of Business partnerships; act as a consultant to senior management of Information Technology program proposals; partner with the Deputy County Administrator to facilitate a technology budget issue review as part of the annual budget development process;
Develop and maintain the IT infrastructure at the Enterprise level and manage network security;
Coordinate Enterprise vendor relationships and assist departments in optimizing vendor performance;
Partner with Human Resources in conducting IT salary market surveys; develop and publish the County Information Technology Position Reference Guide; consult with technology officers and Human Resources on IT staff retention, recruitment, and compensation proposals;
Represent the technology interests of the County to parties external to the County;
Provide the County Manager and Board of Supervisors with annual goals describing the infrastructure and operational plans for Enterprise–level information systems and technology;
Provide technical advice and support to the County Manager and Board of Supervisors; will provide technology consulting services to agencies, departments or individuals on an as-requested basis;
Encourage and make recommendations to County management for shared services and consolidated operations (e.g. GIS, data warehouses, data centers, etc.);
Review technology-related items at the request of the Board of Supervisors;
Convene, as necessary, select committees or oversight bodies to address Enterprise-level issues impacting project or fiscal technology governance.

Organizations are fully responsible for the benefits and costs of information technology deployed in their operations. They will assume accountability for delivering productivity gains derived from technology implementation as committed to in their business strategies and plans. Operations will employ solutions that provide the lowest overall business cost to the County. To optimize technology and business alignment, Department Heads should establish a direct reporting relationship with their Technology Officer. In the case of Elected Officials, a Chief Deputy may be appropriate.
Significant investment in new technology will not be made until processes have been first re-engineered or enhanced by eliminating redundant tasks and duplicate data. Data should be entered into the information system only once at the point of origin. Organizations will build horizontal business processes around citizens, business partners and internal customers. Technology must measurably enhance the productivity or quality of work based upon full life-cycle costing. Common systems will be used for all similar business functions unless verifiable proof (mandate) exists that some functions must remain different or unique or separate. Shared systems resources and common data repositories will be exploited wherever possible.
Whenever the need arises for additional technology capability, consideration will be given to enhancing existing systems before opting for entirely new systems. Small, timely, incremental improvements must be considered prior to any investment in large and comprehensive programs. Large, new initiatives will be funded and executed in incremental phases of two years or less to: 1) demonstrate proof of concept; 2) minimize risk; and 3) track achievement of business goals.
The preferred approach to new systems will be to integrate purchased applications that are based upon recognized industry standards and common user interfaces. Custom modifications to off-the-shelf products are acceptable only for mandated functionality. Development of a completely custom business application will be considered only as a last resort. New systems will be validated in pilot implementations prior to full scale deployment.
The oversight of major programs will be assigned to one of the three governance tiers: Enterprise (IT Governance Council or Office of the CIO); Community of Business (Leadership Team); or Department (Business Leadership). Business and technology oversight will be maintained throughout the program life cycle. Independent reviews by either Internal Audit or external service providers may be requested by senior management as appropriate.
The IT infrastructure shall allow employees, citizens and business partners to satisfy the majority of their business needs using electronic means. It will be deployed so that the location of data or the application that produces data is irrelevant. The infrastructure will integrate communications, computing and systems support functions automatically by means that do not require personal intervention.
Technology resources will be leveraged effectively and efficiently through the adoption of common standards and shared information. Data, voice, video, image, workflow and GIS information systems shall be standardized and interoperable between all County agencies. The IT infrastructure will define the interfaces between systems (standardizing interfaces rather than content). Well-defined interfaces will last longer than the systems they connect to and will provide greater flexibility in the choice of systems procured.
Information systems will be periodically audited for compliance to relevant County policy by the Internal Auditor, special contract, or as requested by the Board of Supervisors, County Manager, Chief Officers, or Department Heads.