Rebooting Virginia’s technology

Students’ desire to learn more about information technology in government brought Virginia’s Secretary of Technology George Newstrom to VCU. He told members of the Association of Information Technology Professionals how he plans to bring business principles into the state government.

When he took the position of secretary of technology in 2000, which he said he only did because of Gov. Mark Warner’s vision, Newstrom set out to develop Virginia as a major entity in the global economic marketplace.

“We don’t have an identity (like Silicon Valley),” he said in a speech Monday night.

The secretary talked about his plans for technology in the commonwealth that will save taxpayers a lot of money.

The Center for Innovative Technology in Dulles, he said, houses the best chance for growth in the state’s economy. They are trying to increase federal research dollars that feed into Virginia’s colleges and universities. Because of the changing economic conditions in south and southwest Virginia, Newstrom said it is important to educate, skill and re-skill employees. The education system could help citizens, but he said it should be utilized to its fullest potential.

The center, Newstrom said, will also increase statewide broadband deployment, especially in rural areas. While he stressed it is important for people to have affordable access to broadband connection, he doesn’t think the government should step in at this time.

“Anything we try to regulate we screw up,” he said.

His office, he said, will revolutionize services within the government by consolidating the information technology infrastructure and providing centralized services. Newstrom, who worked for Ross Perot’s company, Electronic Data Systems, for 25 years, told the audience that the state government has 5,000 forms. Fifty percent of those forms are online, but only 5 percent of those 50 percent can be submitted electronically.

The state, he said, also has 104 data centers, 34 of which are in Richmond.

“How many do we need? I don’t know what the right answer is,” he said, adding that the state government has eight different e-mail systems.

Reducing redundancy and utilizing efficiency, Newstrom said, will help his office use a best practices model.

“The problem with government is that we tend to work in stovepipes…it’s hard to give up control,” he said.

Newstrom’s plan, which he said he would recommend even if the state was not in a budget crisis, will save Virginia’s government $100 million over three years.

“There is no money machine in Gov. Warner’s office. I checked,” he said.

Technology is moving fast, he said. Cell phones in Japan and the United Kingdom have credit card and video capabilities. Also, in a very short time, Newstrom said, palm pilots will be as fast as a broadband connection.

“We are very slow to adapt to that,” he said, adding that China’s growth is phenomenal. “It’s pathetic how slow were are. We have to catch up with the rest of the world.”

Some students in attendance expressed concern about the information technology job market in Virginia once they graduate. Newstrom suggested that the students choose coursework that is strong in math and science because there is no specific skill set that will carry a person for life in the field.

“There is no such thing as a perfect job in IT anymore,” he said, adding that since technology evolves at such a fast pace it’s important to learn mechanics instead of just a specific programming language.

Peter Feddo, events director for the Association of Information Technology professionals and a VCU junior, said he enjoyed the lecture, especially the secretary’s ideas about converging televisions, personal computers and wireless devices into a single communications tool.

“Being a state employee as well, I appreciate his ideas to reorganize technology in state government,” he said. “There are so many ways to make business processes more efficient.”