The Center for Technology in Government (CTG), through the Using Information in Government (UIG) Program, has worked for more than a year with New York State agency project teams and partners from the public, private, and academic sectors to identify benefits and strategies for integrating and using data for program planning, evaluation, and decision making. The policy, management, and technology issues identified through our work with the agency teams were shared with the public in a series of seminars focused on increasing the value of existing information to government programs. This report summarizes the presentations given at the second session of the Using Information in Government Seminar Series, "Information Use Tools and Skill Sets," which was held on May 4, 1999 at the University at Albany.

All business decisions require information. But with the emergence of new technologies, it has become harder for managers to know what analytical tools they should use to get the most out of their information for planning, evaluation, and decision making. The "Information Use Tools and Skill Sets" seminar addressed public managers' needs for new skill sets, information-related competencies, technical tools, and techniques to ensure that relevant information is identified and used. The seminar included five presentations and a panel discussion.

• Theresa Pardo, project director at CTG, set the stage for the half-day seminar with her presentation on "Information Use Tools and Skill Sets: Keeping Up with the Times."
• Jochen Scholl, graduate assistant at CTG, discussed "Knowledge Management Tools."
• Two representatives from the NYS Department of Health, Research Scientist Peter Lannon and Data Processing Technical Services Manager Robert Pennacchia, presented the case titled "New Tools and New Skills to Improve Access to Information: Medicaid Managed Care Encounter Data System."
• Frank Winters, director of the NYS Department of Transportation's GIS Unit, discussed his department "New Tool to View and Analyze Capital Program Plans: Executive GIS Capital Program Viewer."
• Michael Mittleman, chief information officer of the NYS Office of Mental Health, presented a case on "New Tool to Monitor, Control, and Assess Overtime Consumption: Overtime Analysis Intranet Application."
• The seminar concluded with a panel discussion featuring the six presenters.