Tod Newcombe Contributing Editor Linda Salac said half-jokingly that employees hide behind their desks when she enters a room. Salac admits her pushiness might send some employees scurrying for cover, but it's all for a reason. As the imaging project director for Nebraska's Bureau of Vital Statistics, a division of the Department of Health, she knows that results don't happen without persistence. If it means getting on some workers' nerves, well, that's too bad. Being a project manager for any government computer application is not easy. And when it involves document imaging, the difficulties increase. For imaging to succeed, project managers must contend with the wrenching change it brings to workers who are used to doing tasks a certain way. Imaging systems not only remove paper from routine workloads, they eliminate entire work processes. Managers also must deal with the complexity of converting large stores of documents into electronic images while, at the same time, deploying an expensive and complex information system. "To do a big project like this one, you have to be persistent," said Salac, who has been in state government for 12 years, the last nine with the Department of Health. She quickly rattled off several other requirements for project management success: early commitment from upper management, the ability to focus all your time and energy on getting the job done, help from other key state workers who are experts in their field, adherence to deadlines and, finally, the development of a detailed plan. "Don't wait to begin an imaging project when a crisis is at hand," remarked Salac. "You will never be able to plan strategically."
BIRTH CERTIFICATES Salac's current job as a project manager for imaging systems came, in part, from a surging demand for birth certificates. New state and federal mandates requiring the use of birth certificates for a verifying birth dates has increased the bureau's workload significantly, increasing turnaround time from three days to as many as 10 days. With the exception of a mainframe computer that stores an index of births in the state, workers have to manually perform up to 27 tasks and spend as much as 45 minutes to process a single request. Multiply that by approximately 118,000 certificates issued each year, and it's easy to see why changes to the system are necessary. Two years ago, the bureau began a feasibility study to see whether technology might be the solution to their problems. Besides uncovering just how work-intensive it was to issue a certificate, the study examined the capabilities and limitations of imaging technology. One point became crystal clear: using imaging to store and retrieve images of certificates would not solve all their problems. "To get maximum value out of this project, we would need the full complement of electronic document technologies," said Salac. For example, because certificates are not issued unless a payment is received, the bureau needs a system that would integrate cash management and accounting with records management of the certificates. In typical government fashion, the feasibility study was handled by a series of committees - six in all - that examined issues pertaining to the legality of imaging for certificates, budgeting, planning, technology concerns and user needs. A steering committee oversaw and coordinated the efforts of the other groups. As project manager, Salac developed a strategic plan that covered the entire scope of the project, including the management of three key issues: project timing, funding and staff to get the job done. At the next level of detail, Salac's strategic plan broke the project down into five phases, starting with what she called a knowledge search, a time when brainstorming and coalition building took place. The awareness phase that followed continued to build support for the project, and at the same time examined the issue of integrating or replacing the existing microfilm system with imaging. The third phase dealt with issues concerning funding while phase four went after winning support for the project from upper management and the state legislature. The final phase concerned actual implementation of the system, from bid letting and selection to system development and deployment. Acknowledging her limitations - "I'm not an expert on anything," - Salac turned to experts in Nebraska's state government to help her guide the project toward successful completion. Salac recruited a technical analyst and a records management analyst from the Department of Health, and a budget and legal expert from the governor's office. Eschewing paid, outside consultants, Salac turned instead to neighboring Kansas, which had already implemented an imaging system in vital statistics, for expert advice. The director of Kansas' Center for Health and Environmental Statistics agreed to help the bureau with its business and systems analysis for no fee. The bureau also leveraged the help of imaging vendors, recruiting one to assist with preparation of a cost-benefit analysis - again at no cost.
THREE STRATEGIES When it came time to seek funding for the project, Salac developed three strategies, hoping one would win approval from the state legislature. "Plan A" called for a one year, $1 million budget from the state's general fund. "Plan B" called for the same amount of general funds spread over a two-year period. "Plan C," which won acceptance, relies on cash to fund the project through an increase in certificate fees over a four-year time period. On the advice of the governor's budget analyst, Salac scaled back the cost of the project a few hundred dollars so that the price tag dropped below $1 million, improving the likelihood of the project's approval. When the project was presented to the appropriation committee, the project team showed them an optical disc so that the legislators could really see how technology can transform so much paper into an entirely new medium. At the same time, legislators saw the deteriorated condition of some of the older paper certificates. "If you want to win over the legislature," said Salac, "it helps to show as well as tell them the reasons for the project." With responses to the bureau's request for proposals due back soon, Salac is confident that her well-laid plans will pay off handsomely when the imaging system is installed early next year. The proposed system will substantially improve customer service through automation and integration of document management, workflow and cash management into one system. Eventually, the state's four regional vital statistics offices will be networked to the system as well. Salac cited three factors that make project management successful: teamwork, recruiting smart people and timing. "Our timing plan has been on target for nearly three years," she said. "We haven't missed a deadline yet."
