Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009 - (Page 43)

The phone-system project was led by two Technology Committee members: Diane Mehaffey and me. We regularly reported back to the committee on the project’s status. We demoed just about every vendor on the market and came up with a large list of products and features we were looking for. We wanted a system that was easy to use, expandable and could evolve as technology changed. The ShoreTel system we chose was a pure VoIP solution and had done a lot around unified communications, which was one of the areas where we saw much potential for improvement. Digital phones gave us some call center functionality including queuing, work groups and reporting that we lacked previously, and the opportunity to improve customer service. All of the features are very easy to use, so even the less technical people can perform advanced functions. Scalability was one of our biggest concerns because of the city’s rapid growth, and ShoreTel’s system would scale to 10,000 users, which is far past our projections of less than 300. Phone and in-person communications make up a large majority of interaction between the city and its citizens. But with the growth in broadband penetration and the demands for always-available access and service, we knew there was much Web presence improvement to be made. Web Site Redesign In summer 2007, we launched a Web site redesign project that was the single largest project we had faced as a group and involved numerous stakeholders throughout the city and surrounding areas. We worked on this project from concept to budget, budget to vendor selection, and vendor selection to completion. We included a number of features such as frequently asked questions, a newsletter subscription service, an events calendar, job postings and news items with RSS feed capabilities. But we wanted to do more; we wanted to get away from one-way communication and allow instant feedback and 24/7 availability. With a request tracker service we dubbed “Hutto Listens,” Web site users can submit and track requests online and receive notification anytime an update was made to their request. Another unique feature that Hutto implemented was a fully functional smallscreen device Web site, Mobile.HuttoTX.gov. Users could browse a portion of the Web site from smaller devices, and the information has been formatted to fit mobile devices’ viewing needs. This is something that not many other cities are doing — especially smaller cities — and we saw it as another avenue to connect with our constituents. A Future Beyond Web 2.0 As a technology decision-maker for Hutto, being a Millennial has influenced my choices, and I tend to question the phrase, “That’s the way it has always been done.” Over the past couple years, we have seen much improvement in anytime/anywhere access in the phone and computer systems for city employees and representatives. We have improved communications in all areas with our Web 2.0 and unified communications initiatives. We’ve decreased our impact on the environment through the use of thin clients and other green initiatives. The advancements have improved communication, increased department collaboration, streamlined business processes and improved overall operational efficiencies. As we move forward, I see many great things ahead: open government; greater use of Web 2.0; and more collaboration among the city, county, state and feds. But projects require support from more than just the IT department. I think as a Millennial I have to seek input from other generations and really look at things from their perspective to get the necessary buy-in. The biggest differences that I see between the Millennials and other generations is that we tend to question the motives of authority and view work as just a job. Those differences should also affect how Hutto serves its citizens. ¨ PHOTO BY MICAH GRAU www.public-cio.com [43] http://Mobile.HuttoTX.gov http://www.public-cio.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009

Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009 Contents Contributors Introduction Tense Times Insider Threat Twenty and Counting Labor of Love Putting Process Into Play Crossover Appeal FastGov CIO Central Security Adviser CIOs Pluck BlackBerry Phones From the Field Straight Talk

Public CIO - December 2008/January 2009

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