New York State’s enterprise IT governance arrangements have evolved from the initial Governor’s Task Force for IRM to the current structure. Communication of basic information and sharing of resources has progressed from an agency-centric focus to a more enterprise, service-oriented focus. For example, CIO/OFT provides several enterprise-wide services through the CIO/OFT Data Center and through the CIO/OFT Training Academy. Outside CIO/OFT and the current CIO Council, there are no enterprise IT entities that provide the kind of oversight, advisory, or information sharing capabilities seen in other states.

While this limited scope of formal oversight bodies for IT governance results in challenges for New York State government in developing the kind of collaborative advisory relationships participants in the project perceived as ideal, many participants in the project noted examples of agency and domain-level enterprise governance structures currently providing high value to the state. For example, several agencies interested in building effective collaborations with other agencies have published their IT governance policies and procedures. The Workers’ Compensation Board and the Department of Environmental Conservation are two such agencies. Each is using their IT governance structure internally to ensure IT investments are aligned with desired business outcomes and to support coordinated action with other agencies.

In addition to agency-level governance initiatives, there are two functioning domain-specific enterprise governance structures functioning in New York State. The first, the Integrated Justice Advisory Board, was created in 2004 by the state’s Director of Criminal Justice. The objective was to bring together CIOs from the five executive branch agencies related public safety so that they could look at criminal justice from an enterprise approach. The second domain specific governance structure was instituted in 2005-2006 to oversee the development of a new Financial Management System (FMS) for the State of New York. The overall FMS project plan called for an Executive Board to be created along with a Joint Governance Board and a Joint Coordinating Committee. This governance structure is unique in that it brings together three organizations that have two separately elected constitutional officers overseeing them. The Department of Budget and the Office for Technology report directly to the Governor, while the Office of the State Comptroller reports to the Comptroller, a separately elected constitutional officer.

NYS Workers’ Compensation Board
The purpose of the Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) Governance Process is to provide a framework to ensure that investments have economic value and that the WCB’s technology environment is rational, sound, and continuously aligned with achieving desired business outcomes. Through the adoption of a formal selection and prioritization process, the WCB will be able to effectively apply its resources to initiatives that are most closely aligned with its strategic vision. This will streamline the annual planning process and provide direct input into the budget cycle.

Informal additions to IT governance are emerging as well. In 2007 an ad hoc governance structure, the Economic Securities and Human Services Advisory Board (ESHSAB), was created by a group of agency CIOs who were interested in fostering a collaborative environment for the creation of computer applications that supported like business processes. This ad hoc governance structure outlined its scope, roles, and responsibilities and delineated how decisions would be made within the group. This group currently consists of CIOs from seven state agencies.

NYS Financial Management System
The 2005-06 Executive Budget announced “a long-term project to transform the State’s financial management practices and implement a statewide FMS. This new system, to be integrated across all agencies concurrently with business process and organizational reforms, will enhance program and financial accountability and improve the State’s analytical, performance evaluation and reporting capabilities.”

Source: http://www.nyfms.state.ny.us/KeyInformation/key_information.htm