SACRAMENTO — State CIO Carlos Ramos on Tuesday, Dec. 1, discussed a series of initiatives underway that are designed to improve project management, reduce project risk and help vendors work effectively with their state partners. Here are five takeaways from his keynote remarks at the State of Technology Industry Forum presented by Techwire.
1. Ramos said the third stage — the procurement analysis — of the state’s revamped project approval process is due to be released in early January 2016. Ramos said vendors should become acquainted with all phases of the Project Approval Lifecycle (PAL) because their business opportunities might shift, especially for companies that help state entities write feasibility studies, develop the requirements for bid proposals or conduct RFPs.
2. Ramos urged vendors to look out for the state’s new process that will publish conceptually approved projects on a quarterly basis. These projects, he said, will have a much better chance of becoming reality than those listed under the old annual IT Capital Plan, which Ramos said over time had become something of a “wish list” from departments and agencies.
3. The new California Project Management Office (CA-PMO) is now open for business, Ramos said. The office, headed by executive director Tamara Armstrong, will offer professional project management expertise to agencies and departments that need it. Ramos said he has asked CA-PMO to develop a new project management framework for the state of California, in coordination with other state agencies. All state agencies eventually will be asked to use the new framework. Consequently, vendors should see the state using a more structure approach to project management, and better training and tools for departments, Ramos said. The new project management framework is scheduled to be released in May 2016, Armstrong added.
4. The CA-PMO also will be developing a practitioner database and training curriculum for project management, Ramos said. The practitioner system will help everyone find information about experienced project managers working in state agencies and departments. Historically, the challenge is these people are spread out in state government and people don’t know where they are, Ramos said. Also, he said he hopes the database will help develop a pipeline and career path for civil servants who want to specialize in project management.
5. The state has created a Project Management Advisory Council composed of representatives from the Office of Systems Integration, the Franchise Tax Board and other agencies that have a track record of successfully managing projects. The council is helping with the development of the CA-PMO, the training curricula, and the development of new project management job classifications.
“All of these are efforts we’ve taken on to try and improve the practice and discipline of project management in the state, and to improve the track record [for projects] and performance on the state side,” Ramos said.
See video of Ramos' keynote address below:
