1/17/08 Council on Efficient Government Approves Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2008
CONTACT:
LINDA MCDONALD
(850) 921-5266
~Special report to Governor Crist reviews purchasing, accounting and HR technology projects~
TALLAHASSEE- The Council on Efficient Government today approved the Report to the Governor on MyFloridaMarketPlace, People First and Project Aspire. In February 2007, Governor Charlie Crist asked the Council on Efficient Government to conduct a comprehensive review of three large state projects which cumulatively cost the state approximately $553 million over a nine-year period. The report outlines the goals and actual outcomes of each project as well as recommendations based on the lessons learned for these and future enterprise-wide projects.
"I applaud Governor Crist for his leadership to take a long hard look at these projects," said Department of Management Services Secretary Linda H. South who chairs the Council on Efficient Government. "Florida has an opportunity to take this information and move forward to make sure large scale projects are done effectively and efficiently."
In 2000, the state began an effort to upgrade and modernize its core operational software and IT infrastructure, for its accounting, cash management, procurement and human resources functions. Prior to this effort the state systems ran on five separate tools. By the end of 2000, several initiatives addressed the upgrade plan, but without a cohesive integration plan: MyFloridaMarketPlace for purchasing functions, People First for HR functions and Project Aspire for accounting and financials.
The three projects are commonly referred to as "outsourced projects," but only People First is considered a true outsourcing project where business processes were outsourced to a third party outside state government and jobs were eliminated. MyFloridaMarketPlace and Project Aspire are considered IT software integrations, with little impact to state employees as a result of their implementation.
The Florida Efficient Government Act of 2006 created the Council on Efficient Government in response to the outsourcing of government services and jobs. The group reviews, evaluates and provides advice on agency outsourcing and best practices to improve government accountability. There are seven members appointed by the governor including Secretary South, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, two heads of executive branch agencies and three members from the private sector.
To download a copy of the report visit: http://dms.MyFlorida.com/other_programs/council_on_efficient_government/report_to_the_governor.
###