Announcement of Upcoming Procurement

Colorado Statewide Internet Portal Authority

Announcement of Upcoming Procurement:

Colorado.gov Portal Integrator 

May 20, 2013

The Colorado Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) is pleased to announce the upcoming release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) to obtain a qualified Contractor to serve as the Portal Integrator for the Colorado.gov portal. The RFP is anticipated for release in June 2013.

The purpose of the RFP is to solicit competitive proposals from proposers who may serve as the Portal Integrator, which encompasses current online government services and the deployment of new online government services. Current services include the operations, maintenance, and enhancements of government websites for those customers who currently have agreements with SIPA for this service. The Contractor will also be responsible for designing, developing, and deploying new websites as additional government entities and initiatives require the Portal’s services.

Another Contractor responsibility for the portal is to provide payment-processing capabilities for current and future payment-processing customers. Additionally, the Contractor will develop specialized applications, using agreed upon task orders, to support the growing demand for online government services. Finally, the Contractor will need to manage 3^rd party service providers for the delivery of certain applications and services. The service delivery approach will be financially sustainable through a revenue-share model between SIPA and the Contractor.

The current portal model has been highly successful and has exceeded goals outlined in the original strategic vision. There continues to be broad opportunities for innovations, new approaches, and successes through e-Government. By continuing the public-private partnership model, the portal will build upon past successes and provide the opportunity to enhance service delivery to Residents, Businesses, Tourists and Government Entities_.

The intent of SIPA is to award a Contract for an initial five-year period effective May 1, 2014, through April 30, 2019, with the option of extensions up to a total of four years (in increments of one to four years) to be executed through one or more contract amendments.

We look forward to the opportunity to work with you. For more upcoming information regarding this RFP please watch our website www.colorado.gov/sipa or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.                   

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Growth

The Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) has seen tremendous growth the past 4 years and it shows no signs of slowing down. Here are some key facts about SIPA's growth:

• The number of eligible governmental entities that have an agreement for service with SIPA has grown from 24 in July of 2009 to 226 as of May 8, 2013. This represents a growth of 842 percent.
• Gross receipts have grown from $627,000 for fiscal year 2008/2009 to an un-audited $6.5 million in fiscal year 2012/2013. This represents a growth of 937 percent.
• The number of services offered through SIPA has grown from 3 in 2009 to 7 in 2013. This represents a growth of 133 percent.
• The number of financial transactions has grown from 1.5 million in 2009/2010 to 1.9 million in 2011/2012. This represents a growth of 27 percent.
• The number of Google licenses started with an initial purchase of 1,500 in July 2010 and today (May 2013) SIPA supplies over 35,000 licenses to 17 governmental entities in Colorado. This represents a staggering 2,233 percent increase and more governments continue to sign up.
• SIPA supported ~35 websites in 2009 and today it supports ~192 websites and thousands of web pages. This represents a growth of 448 percent.

SIPA started in 2004 and few knew if it would be successful or if it would even be able to operate and sustain itself past the first year. The first Board of Directors came together with little funding, little experience in running a portal and little knowledge about how to move forward. What they came with was a vision to create something unique, with a commitment to work long hours and an undying support for assisting governments with their technology needs. I think the numbers above demonstrate that their passion has helped build something special for Colorado governments.

As another fiscal year draws to a conclusion SIPA looks back on its successes and challenges. It is nice to see the growth of SIPA and any organization could easily examine these stats and figures and conclude an accomplished mission. However, SIPA is not just any organization. It is an organization that takes pride in setting stretch goals and doing its utmost to accomplish them in a timely manner. It is also an organization that serves the governments of Colorado and as a result it needs to take a moment to listen and learn what they need as well. SIPA will be working with its Board of Directors in the coming months to establish goals for the next 1, 2 and even 3 years. These goals will include many things and they will certainly be adjusted from time to time. As these discussions get started I would enjoy hearing from current and potential customers on what goals they feel SIPA should set and what services they feel SIPA should be offering. Take a moment to leave a comment or if you want send me an email directly at john@cosipa.gov. 

To get the conversation started I will throw out one goal that I intend to move forward. SIPA will improve its outreach to current customers by increasing communications, sending out more surveys on their experience, and responding to those surveys within 20 days. More goals will center around the customer experience as SIPA believes 2013/2014 needs to demonstrate a re-commitment to the customers which are responsible for all the success that SIPA has enjoyed.  

Technology Decisions Should Be Made By...

Who technology decisions should be made by depends on the circumstances. For instance, if the technology being purchased is an email system, servers, security, telephony systems, network equipment or anything of a similar nature the technology department should primarily make that decision. The technology department (IT guys or gals) is best suited to know the needs of the organization since they are servicing helpdesk tickets every day.  They are also in the best position to know what type of system, network speed or application is going to meet 90-95 percent of the needs based on their review of existing and available systems. Also, at this point the question has less to do with features and more to do with base functions and price. 

If, on the other hand, the decision is around a line of business application like an accounting system, billing system, grant management system, or a company's main product line the business managers and leaders need to be highly involved with providing the requirements for the solution and they need to have a large say in what is decided. These individuals are going to be using the system the majority of the time, they understand the business or regulatory environment best, they are the ones interacting with customers and know what is being requested, and if their wishes and needs are unaccounted for the system may never live up to expectations which could prove disastrous for any organization (public or private sector).  

Since technology drives most of what we do today in our working and personal lives we need to ensure decisions are made thoughtfully and prudently. I personally believe that decisions worth making should be made as a team. The input of others make for better decisions and result in supporters, of the decision, from the beginning. With a team making a decision there are more voices and while that leads to more opinions to consider it also leads to a stronger decision. However, the team needs to be comprised of the right individuals and ground rules needs to be laid out at the beginning of the process. Assembling a team to help make a decision does not allow the executive to abdicate their responsibilities of providing leadership and guiding the group to a clear decisive choice. 

Further, a team needs to realize their purpose and have a shared goal. I have seen groups come together who believe their purpose is to stop the decision from being made. They use their position on the committee as a means to prevent change and throw up roadblocks at every opportunity. This serves no purpose and therefore these individuals need to be removed quickly from the process. The right group is made up of individuals that realize a decision must be made, have the good of the organization in mind, will be helpful in supporting the decision, and have practical and thoughtful considerations as to why a particular decision should be made. 

When making a decision the following roles need to be accounted for in some fashion.

• Executive Leadership: This individual is responsible for making the case regarding why a particular decision needs to be made. This is typically a problem or opportunity statement. "To grow ABC Corporation's market share by 15 percent we need to find ways to increase outreach."
• Legal: In today's regulatory and business environment questions about the legality of a decision may arise and it is best to understand these parameters immediately as opposed to making a decision and then trying to have it fit into a legal framework.
• Financial: Any decision is likely going to involve an investment of resources or may need an estimate of revenue to know which path to take. When evaluating options questions will arise about cost, resources on hand, and the like. It is disruptive to stop the process to find this information and therefore having the knowledge as part of the group is important.
• Human Resources: If your decision involves hiring more staff or contracting with a firm to supply staff you are going to need someone who understands the processes and internal practices. If an organization decides to hire it may require promoting someone else to supervise these new resources, it may require training and a host of other items will need to be considered. 
• Technical: Someone on the committee needs to understand the state of technology in use at the organization. You may own several applications or systems that can do what is being requested if banded together. If a purchase is going to be made it will need to be folded into the existing applications and therefore your IT team is going to need to know about it.
• Procurement: Eventually a question will be asked related to completing the work in house or purchasing it externally. When this question arises it will be important to have someone knowledgeable with the procurement practices of the organization.

The above roles are not intended to be exhaustive rather they are intended to serve as the foundation for a committee. An organization will need to add more individuals to the group to make the right decision. You may need business managers, process owners, and customer representation on your committee as each team needs to be carefully built. If these roles are filled with the right people and the people have the right frame of mind a decision will be made that the entire organization can stand by. 

Of course, there will always be times when a decision is made be a single person (or a very small group) out of urgency or necessity to the organization. This is bound to happen and at times is unavoidable. The goal is to have this be the exception and not the rule.

What other roles do you think need to be accounted for when making major decisions? If you think I missed a particular role or skill set please leave a comment so the entire community can benefit.

Electronic Payments through SIPA

Last year, through SIPA, Colorado governments were able to process approximately 2.5 million financial transactions. These transactions include credit and debit cards as well as electronic checks. The ability to perform electronic payments is a service that SIPA makes available to governments throughout Colorado. Currently 99 governments take advantage of the service and they have deployed over 213 applications. These applications include sales tax collection, parking fines, utility billings, permit fees, and many more. Through SIPA these governments avoid approximately $3.6 million in costs each year (99 governments multiplied by $36,500). These costs are avoided when the governments use the services from SIPA as they are no longer responsible for PCI compliance because SIPA and its partner handle these tasks. SIPA uses a very conservative approach to the average costs as some entities report the costs to be over $150,000 the first year and then an annual cost of $35,000.

To be PCI compliant governments and businesses have to:

• Identify its Validation Type as defined by PCI DSS. This is used to determine which Self Assessment Questionnaire is appropriate for your business.
• Complete the Self-Assessment Questionnaire according to the instructions in the Self-Assessment Questionnaire Instructions and Guidelines. When completing the questionnaire there may be tasks your organization must complete to be able to answer the answer the questions in the affirmative.
• Complete and obtain evidence of a passing vulnerability scan with a PCI SSC Approved Scanning Vendor (ASV).
• Complete the relevant Attestation of Compliance in its entirety (located in the SAQ tool).
• Submit the SAQ, evidence of a passing scan (if applicable), and the Attestation of Compliance, along with any other requested documentation, to an acquirer.

There are six overarching goals of the PCI Data Security Standard and a series of requirements associated with those goals. The table below shows the goals and requirements.

As one can see from the list above, being compliant is a rigorous process. With these requirements continually evolving to protect people's information and payments it is a true benefit to have dedicated resources constantly understanding the changes and being prepared to address and implement them.

Over the past month several individuals have asked about the performance of the payment services offered by SIPA. As with any utility system it is often forgotten about until it ceases to perform as intended. By this standard many of SIPA's customers may have forgotten about how important and functional this system is to them.

Some key considerations:

• The system processes just under 7,000 transactions a day.
• Since January 2012 the system has been up 99.9 percent of the time or greater.
• The system works across all commonly used Internet browsers and mobile devices.
• The system is PCI compliant and secure.
• The system is available 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Which is a true convenience for residents, businesses and visitors of Colorado.
• The system, through web services, integrates with most web based applications.
• The system accepts VISA, MasterCard, American Express and Discover cards as well as electronic checks.
• The system is built to be redundant and resilient offering fail-over within 10-15 minutes of a disruption.
• Perhaps the most amazing thing about this system is it is offered and available to any government in Colorado at no cost.

The payment service provided by SIPA and its partner, Colorado Interactive, is a true asset to the governments of Colorado. SIPA has been providing this service and others for 9 years and the team looks forward to many more years to come because the governments depend on it and the residents, businesses, and visitors deserve the convenience of 24 hour services being offered online. Finally, it is important to note that this system is completely self funded and does not receive any direct or indirect appropriations from any federal, state, or local government.

Website Solutions

In last week's blog I discussed some of the challenges and complexities SIPA has with managing so many websites. The blog also previewed part of the new CMS solution including the flexibility it provides, the content areas that are editable, and other features. The more time I spend with the system the more excited I get about its potential.

We built this system with our users in mind and the users had a hand in helping us building it. We get between 30 and 50 requests a year for new websites to be created. As these requests come in we listen to what people want and need. These requests served as the foundation for building the new system. 

The features and functionality that SIPA receives requests for include the following:

• Simplistic design
• Social media integration
• Image slider/carousel
• Improved publishing windows
• Easier administration
• Increased user roles and responsibilities
• Site Search
• File upload
• Calendar of events
• Banner personalization
• Configurable top navigation
• Responsive design

Monument Sanitation District

If you look at the screenshot below you will see some of these new features come to life and others are not visible as they are back end tools. Take note of the top sliver banner and you will see the Google translation service, social media icons and a search bar. For the first time in SIPA's operations we will make social media integration a standard feature in all new websites moving forward. It has been available as a point solution historically and only upon request. Now each and every website can add it at their pleasure. If an organization does not have a social media presence these icons will simply disappear.

Directly below the top sliver banner you will see a graphic that spans the width of the page. This graphic and overlayed logo will be personalized for each and every organization receiving a website from SIPA. If a banner image is not available SIPA's design team will create one on the organization's behalf.

The next area below the banner is the top navigation (look for the white letters spelling "My County" against a blue backdrop) and is how visitors will move around the site and get to the various pages. This navigation bar will support up to 7 distinct items and is configurable by the organization. It also supports drop down navigation which is great for organizing content. The other areas were described in last week's blog post and I encourage you to take a moment to read that as well so you are up to date on all the developments.

Perhaps the biggest unseen improvement is the length of time it will take to initially set up the website. In the past this process could take up to two weeks or even longer. With the new tool the initial setup should take approximately 36-48 hours. This is a great advancement for SIPA and more importantly it is a great benefit to our customers and clients. When a new customer comes to SIPA for a website they are excited about the prospect and that brings about immense passion and support to get the website completed. The old process had them wait weeks ,and shamefully in some instances months, before a start date could be given and that caused their passion and support to suffer which meant they grew frustrated and in some cases abandoned the project. With the initial setup diminished to working days SIPA should be able to ride the tide of excitement to the finish line.

To aid the quick pace and continue toward completion SIPA has designed a questionnaire that will walk each organization through the process of creating content to fill out the information on the site. I am pleased to report that we have already sent 15 of these questionnaires out and have received several back. This first wave of progress will demonstrate the powers of the tool and will allow us to see where improvements can be made in the process.

There is still work to be done and we are continuing to push forward and this blog will be used to provide updates and information along the way. Take a moment and leave a comment or share this with someone who needs the information.

Website Challenges

The Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) manages around 195 websites which is a lot of sites to manage in and of itself. Add to the complexity the fact that we manage sites for government entities at no cost, each site requires its own identity, only about 35 percent of the content editors have formal training in web design or development and the challenges continue to stack up quickly. If these items weren't enough to have you raise the white flag consider that each year SIPA has requests for between 30 and 50 new websites and another 10-20 redesigns of existing web properties. It is these very challenges that get me up and out the door in the morning.

SIPA believes that all governmental organizations should have efficient and operational websites. We know that more and more people would rather search a site then call a phone number and we believe that access to information is paramount to successfully meeting residents expectations. It is these fundamental beliefs that have SIPA offering websites at no cost to governmental organizations. It is also these beliefs that made our current Web Content Management System (CMS) break down. SIPA currently uses a product referred to as Fatwire and it was a great system for many years. Over time though it ceased to serve our clients as robustly as their demands required. Part of this is how the system was originally architected and configured and part of it is because SIPA has been successful at delivering more services to more governments and we have placed a tremendous amount of weight on the system. The reasons for the breakdown are numerous and laced with many nuances which can be confusing to understand. Regardless of the reasons the breakdown caused SIPA to evaluate its current solution along with its current requirements, needs, skills, and requests for website services to determine if it should be using a new CMS and, if so, which one was a good fit.

During this evaluation process SIPA and its team quickly learned one thing. No CMS is perfect and not a single one can meet 100 percent of your requirements 100 percent of the time. They may have great front end tools for the editing team while lacking the back end administration functions for the system administrators. Looking for a good code control system  no problem want that with an awesome WYSIWYG function then you may have to keep looking. SIPA evaluated several products during its review including Oracle WebCenter - formerly Fatwire, WordPress, Site.com, and Drupal 7. All of these products are great in their own right and each have drawbacks and benefits when considering SIPA's requirements. In the end only one solution could be selected to power the websites that SIPA maintains.

This past winter SIPA selected the Drupal platform and quickly began working with its partners to build a CMS that met the majority of its needs. This has been a longer than anticipated project which should have been expected since there are multiple stakeholders, lots of requirements, no central authority for SIPA to consult with, and numerous other complicating factors. Despite these complexities SIPA continued to move forward with the project and continue toward its goal. It would have been easier to revert back to the old system and simply tell our customers that the product is what the product is and there are no improvements on the horizon. This would have been a go out of business strategy and frustrating for all parties involved. While it would have been easier it would not have been the right thing to do and while building a new CMS system is not easy nor is it all that fun at times it is the right thing to do for our customers. SIPA is initially building not one but two interchangeable templates to give our customers the greatest amount of flexibility. The first one of these templates is configurable in such a way that it creates 16 different options for our customers. This template is designed to meet the needs of SIPA's smaller customers (special purpose authorities, villages, single purpose agencies, and the like).

These images were taken from a .pdf document and are intended to show the flexibility the designs offer SIPA's clients. The first shows the 4 different colored schemes offered with the Round Icon template.

This next image is a close up of a single color scheme: 

The final image shows the editable areas of the webpage

1. This area is the Top Navigation and is customized to the organization's needs. It comes standards with 7 menu items.
2. The Welcome area is designed to hold up to two paragraphs of text.
3. An image slider for important images to be shared and viewed.
4. An area for an organization to place important pieces of information.
5. An area that hosts internal or external links so people can quickly get to key pieces of information.
6. An area that hosts internal or external links so people can quickly get to key pieces of information.
7. An area where other Statewide Services will be displayed, these statewide services include tax information and driver license renewal.
8. A calendar of events
9. An area where the organization can highlight the online services they offer to residents, businesses, or tourists.
10. While not listed it is important to note that each top banner is also configurable and will include an image specific to the organization.

I will continue to blog about the features of this new CMS over the next several weeks to talk about its features, functions, and purpose. Let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment or two.

MakingColorado

April 2, 2013 marked the official release of the MakingColorado initiative. MakingColorado is an initiative by the state of Colorado to create a unifying brand identity and not by hiring an advertising or PR firm of any size. Instead it is reaching out to people and businesses who love Colorado. It is seeking the input of individuals all over the country and beyond to get their opinions, thoughts, and images of Colorado. Already the group has spoken to more than 400 people across Colorado and they have designs to engage approximately 1 million people over the life of the project. Leading the team is Aaron Kennedy, Chief Marketing Officer for Colorado who was hired by Governor John Hickenlooper on August 6, 2012. 

Throughout the years the Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) has researched and considered a project or series of projects that would allow it to bring a uniform look and feel to all of the websites in its portfolio. These ideas have never thoroughly matured because one clear hurdle is getting all the various stakeholders to agree on a consistent theme and the timing, resources, and expertise needed for such an endeavor are quite large. SIPA determined to wait until the right time and until the appropriate resources could be applied to the project. With the Governor's State of the State address and the direction he gave to pursue a central brand identity along with Aaron Kennedy and the MakingColorado initiative SIPA believes the state now has the necessary expertise in marketing, outreach, branding, and stakeholder engagement for a successful process to be completed.


Aaron Kennedy approached SIPA with this idea in the fall of 2012 and asked if SIPA would be able to lend any financial support to the concept. Since SIPA hosts 200 websites, manages Colorado.gov, and has a strong desire to create websites that are considered a trusted source its support was never in doubt. The benefits of the project were discussed by SIPA staff and the Board of Directors and a resolution was drawn up between the two organizations. With the board's unanimous support a financial partnership was formed and SIPA contributed an initial $250,000 to the project. SIPA's support does not end solely with the initial contribution, it will continue to give financial support, is making office and meeting space available, and once the brand identity has been selected, through the creative process, SIPA will be involved with its execution by incorporating the themes, verbiage, and images of the brand into many of its existing websites and most of the new sites that it creates. This is a tremendous project and SIPA is happy to be involved. 

Another place this brand identity will take life is on Colorado.gov, the official state web portal. This portal allows individuals to find electronic information, products, and services offered by various state agencies in a single location. Colorado.gov enjoys 2.5 million visitors as year that are using the site to search for information and utilize the services it offers such as renewing a driver's licenses or searching for licensed childcare facilities. 

To create the best brand identity for Colorado everyone needs to participate, give their thoughts, express their opinions, and spread the word to their friends, neighbors, and out of state family. MakingColorado is not just about what the ~6 million residents of Colorado think about our great state, but what businesses think, what tourists think, and what people who have never visited before think as well. When people hear "Colorado" in Belize or Russia what thoughts come to their mind. Do they think only of mountains and skiing or do they think about our world class chefs, the School of Mines, and the great professional sports teams we enjoy? Do they think about snow or do they know that Colorado actually enjoys 300 days of sunshine a year? MakingColorado is an initiative to create a brand identity, but it is also an initiative to engage with people and get these questions answered, it is about getting people talking about Colorado, about getting people excited to visit, excited to explore, and excited to start a business. It is about creating a conversation about all that Colorado is and all that it can be. 

Take a moment and visit the MakingColorado website at www.makingcolorado.gov, follow them on Twitter @MakingColorado, and like them on Facebook. Talk about the initiative with your friends, family and colleagues. Be part of the conversation, have fun with it, and help Colorado become more awesome than it is already.