NASCIO Addresses IT Procurement Risk in States

The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) released an issue brief focusing on state information technology (IT) procurement risk. The NASCIO Procurement Modernization Committee, in partnership with TechAmerica and the National Association of State Procurement Officials, continues to focus on state IT procurement reforms and highlight best practices at the state level. This brief is the third in a series of recommendations set forth by this collaborative.

In the 2012 State CIO Survey: Advancing the C4 Agenda, 46 percent of state chief information officers (CIOs) expressed some form of dissatisfaction with the current form of IT procurement in their states. Taking these frustrations to heart, NASCIO has sought ways to encourage collaboration between CIOs, chief procurement officials and private information technology sector vendors.

Alex Pettit, co-chair of the NASCIO Procurement Modernization Committee and chief information officer for the state of Oklahoma said, “Procurement risk is something that all CIOs deal with and something we wanted to examine closely. The goal of this publication is to present information and options to CIOs to help them to get the conversation started in their states.”

The purpose of the brief is to highlight some of the strategies used to first identify, then to avoid, transfer, mitigate, and ultimately accept the risks associated with the procurement of IT products or services. Although not all risks can be identified, the goal should be to understand how much risk is associated with a specific IT procurement and what tools, processes, benchmarks, and methodologies are available to uniquely address IT procurement risks.

For more information and to view the issue brief, please visit www.NASCIO.org. 

About NASCIO

The National Association of State Chief Information Officers is the premier network and resource for state CIOs and a leading advocate for technology policy at all levels of government. NASCIO represents state chief information officers and information technology executives from the states, territories, and the District of Columbia. The primary state government members are senior officials who have executive level and statewide responsibility for information technology leadership. State officials who are involved in agency level information technology management may participate as state members. Representatives from other public sector and non-profit organizations may also participate as associate members. Private sector firms may join as corporate members and participate in the Corporate Leadership Council.