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"Our hope is that other states will be inspired by Illinois' success
to pursue similar initiatives of their own," said Michael H. McCabe,
regional director of the council. "Illinois taxpayers should be
delighted the state's efforts to improve efficiency, transparency
and accountability are winning national recognition," said Paul
Campbell, acting director of Central Management Services. "We're
proud that in addition to saving taxpayer dollars and improving
accountability, we've freed agencies from a range of administrative
duties so they can better allocate their efforts, time and resources
to fulfilling their core missions and helping the people of
Illinois."
In 2003, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich instructed Central Management
Services to streamline the state's operations, share resources and
save taxpayer money while improving the business services of state
government. A recent report by Deloitte Consulting validated that
efficiency efforts led by the department to fulfill this mandate
saved Illinois taxpayers more than $529 million over the past two
years alone.
Prior to the implementation of this effort, the state's
administrative functions -- such as information technology,
facilities management and procurement of goods and services -- were
largely decentralized and scattered across various agencies,
according to The Council of State Governments. In many cases,
resources were allocated haphazardly and the state missed
opportunities to capture its extensive purchasing power in managing
these duties, the council noted.
Central Management Services led a more networked approach to
fulfill these and other back-office responsibilities, such as
internal audit, media relations and legal services. The model,
called shared services, incorporates sound, private-sector
management principles designed to build consensus, increase
accountability, decrease administrative costs and free up resources
that then can be redirected to core services.
"Illinois' shared services model stood out as an outstanding
example of a successful effort to save taxpayer dollars at a time
when many of our states are facing significant budgetary
challenges," said McCabe, of the awarding council. "But the
selection committee was equally impressed with the program's
emphasis on efficiency, accountability and effective 'customer
service.'"
The Innovations Award is one of several awards that Central
Management Services has received this year:
- In July, Central Management Services and the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency were honored with a CIO
Partnership Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
for their efforts to save resources to benefit taxpayers across
the state. The award recognized both departments' long-standing
achievements in information security and their recent leadership
on projects using e-authentication technology between the state
and national governments.
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- In April, Central Management Services received the E-Gov
Institute's 2005 Knowledge Management Award for the state's
innovative procurement practices. As part of its reorganization
to become a more effective service agency to state government,
the department created the Bureau of Strategic Sourcing and
Procurement, which is revolutionizing the way goods and services
are purchased by the state. To support these efforts, the bureau
created the Knowledge Management Division to assist with
research, professional development, administration of
procurement systems, contract compliance and procurement call
center.
The knowledge management system has helped save millions in its
first full year of operation alone. Cost savings were achieved
by leveraging existing state technology -- Lotus Notes --
instead of implementing new technology that could have cost
millions of dollars.
About The Council of State Governments
Since 1975, The Council of State Governments has identified
innovative state policies or programs that have been successfully
implemented by individual states and have the potential to be
adapted for use in other states. Initiated in 1986, the council's
Innovations Award program was designed to afford greater public
visibility to the innovative and exemplary state programs selected
each year and to facilitate the transfer of those successful
experiences to other states. The Council of State Governments is
headquartered in Lexington, Ky.
About Central Management Services
By bringing private-sector discipline to its public-sector
mission, the department leads the cost-effective administration of
purchasing, real estate, information technology, telecommunications,
internal audit and outside legal services for the state's executive
agencies, personnel, benefits for all state employees and retirees,
and for the state's employee and vendor diversity programs. The
department continues to achieve savings and enhance services as it
implements new technologies, reduces waste and rethinks many of the
administrative operations of the state.
[Illinois
Department of Central Management Services
news release]
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