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Advancing the Concepts & Practices of Information Resources Management in Modern Organizations

Preparing a Government Agency for the New Economy: A Success Story

Preparing a Government Agency for the New Economy: A Success Story
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Author(s): Derek Asoh (State University of New York at Albany, USA), Salvatore Belardo (State University of New York at Albany, USA)and Jakov Crnkovic (State University of New York at Albany, USA)
Copyright: 2002
Pages: 4
Source title: Issues & Trends of Information Technology Management in Contemporary Organizations
Source Editor(s): Mehdi Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Information Resources Management Association, USA)
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-930708-39-6.ch042
ISBN13: 9781930708396
EISBN13: 9781466641358

Abstract

The Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) in New York State (NYS) provides services to the population of NYS through a program of regulation designed to control government agencies. Because of this role, there has been an adversarial relationship between OSC and other agencies. In mid-1993, new concepts of partnership and quality management were introduced setting in motion the machinery of multi-faceted change that is still ongoing. At the heart of these new concepts is the use of information technology (IT). This study examines the successful initiation, adoption and diffusion of IT within OSC in support of the new approach to business, and identifies the factors that have contributed to success. In particular, we will focus on the Multi-purpose Access for Customer Relations and Operational Support (MACROS) project within OSC’s Division of Municipal Affairs (OSC-MA). MACROS was the first effort intended to improve the quality of OSC-MA services. What used to be, up until the late 90s, a mammoth semi-manually operated environment is fully automated today. As a result of MACROS success, municipalities can now receive/complete/file annual financial reports (AFR) and/or annual update documents (AUD) electronically. The successful implementation of MACROS has become the cornerstone of an operational enterprise network in OSC-MA. It links all employees, helps OSC-MA respond to most requests for information and facilitates communication. MACROS reflects a unique vision of what, why and how one government agency has accomplished in preparing itself for business success in the turbulent new economy that demands more responsive customization of services. We believe that other organizations can learn from the approach.

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