"lt's always People, Process and Needs; rarely a technology issue"

JOSEPH MARCELLA
CIO / Director of Information Technologies
City of Las Vegas

Marcella has logged over forty years in Information Systems and more than thirty in the management of business technologies. Marcella has been credited in both the private and public sectors with numerous “firsts”. Continuing this trend; the City of Las Vegas is one of a few government entities to earn an Oracle showcase designation. Recently he was honored as one of the Nation’s Top 25 CIOs - Doers; Dreamers and Drivers, and received Nevada’s 2012 Top Tech Executive Award.

Challenges in technology to meet enterprise needs in 2013 and expectations.

Technology solutions are based on a specific business needs. In the private sector it’s buying things and selling things, in Government it’s analogues to an unrelated conglomerate, and in both it’s a service orientation. Most technology solutions have taken an enterprise approach to infrastructure applications; ERP if you will. Organizations who kept business application software, ERP, and their technology, stack reasonably current during the downturn are now faced with the next tier of product delivery. That next “step forward” is going to be a challenge.
Communities looking for self serviceData available for citizen/customer consumption to build an APP or conduct a bit of analytics. The challenge is understanding the needs, adapting the technology, finding a way to do it securely and putting the right resources behind it to invent, perpetuate and re-invent.

Solutions Wish list:
• Clear and simple direction (Strategy ?)
• A community/customer partnership Social engagement
• 4 Generations of workforce understanding each other’s contribution in the process as well as management understanding the morphed resource MIX
• Mobile workforce
• Self Service
• Focused funding
• Secure

The areas in business environment where solutions do not yet exist or not up to the mark, and which if existed, would've made job easier.

Balancing the Drag of Legacy with the pull of bleeding edge.

As I mentioned before local government consists of many vertical disciplines providing services we must support by statute, being in the business that no private company really can make a profit at. It’s difficult to preserve those vertical functions and leverage whatever you can in horizontal technology. Really don’t need a payroll application in each department (that can be shared in an ERP), but we do need to deliver distinct services in public safety versus land development.

Now we need to find the commonality to ensure that we can MEASURE what we do and leverage the integration between systems /departments /business applications.

Enterprise systems to support an enterprise approach to services are now maturing.
Would really like to ask our citizens for their name and address once!

Technology Trends Impacting Enterprise Business Environment
• BOYD
• Open Data
• Big Data and the BI Piece
• Our Mission is to find out what folks need, once done- keep it running, then measure it, so management can run the place.

My roles and responsibilities as a CIO
Use to be alignment with the business units and needs Today it’s being part of and integrated with the process by being at the table with the business leaders and community served.

Lessons I learned as a CIO that can help you
It’s always People, Process and Needs; rarely a technology issue. Your option is always to Build, Buy, Rent or hare to support the business direction 80-20. Don’t go after the last 20% with an 80% effort (do it/fix it/try it again or Ready fire aim) The experimental agile method Ain’t dead yet ! Next life I’m gonna drive a fork lift --- you get evenings and weekends off ! Smile