Bridging the IT Gap

The  Computer Services Department (CSD) hosted its first IT Procurement Network  Event on Friday 2 March, at the George Town Yacht Club. The event brought a  cross section of government workers, who are charged with making IT purchasing  decisions, together with local and international IT solution vendors, with the  aim of building better partnerships.

"There are a lot of stakeholders involved in the process  of finding IT solutions for government entities, and each one has their own set  of concerns and objectives that need to be meet," notes Tia Parrott CSD Support  Administrator and event coordinator. "Because there are so many people involved  sometimes the communication isn't as effective as it could be. That's really  what this event is about. It's about getting everyone talking with each other  so we can better understand our needs so we can the best solutions, for the  best value.

The event  began with the heads of Government's Computer Services Department, e-Government  unit and Central Procurement Office updating the audience on strategic goals  for IT and e Government as well as developments in the procurement process. The  Manager of the Treasury Department's EPS reporting unit also served as a panelist  for an open Q&A session.

Commerce  Minister, Hon. Joseph Hew congratulated CSD for the success of the event. "Hosting this event was a forward thinking approach on the part of the Department  and I applaud them for that. It fostered productive dialogue between private  sector IT vendors and public sector IT stakeholders, that will lead to  solutions that will benefit the people of the Cayman Islands," comments  Minister Hew.

"We're  really pleased with the conversations that took place," says Ms. Parrott. "The discussions that took place helped to bring some clarity to some  concerns and issues each stakeholder has faced, and gave us some perspective on  how we can improve as well."

The department plans to host another networking  event later this year.