The state Departments of Environmental Quality, Information Technology and Transportation were recently recognized by two national organizations for their innovative use of technology and leadership in government IT.
The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) and N.C. Department of Information Technology (NCDIT) won the National Association of State Chief Information Officers’ (NASCIO) award for Business Process Innovations for NCDEQ’s Modernizing Environmental Mapping with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles program.
Using unmanned aerial systems, or drones, for field data collection and mapping has allowed NCDEQ divisions to considerably improve their business processes, increase productivity, save staff time and decrease costs.
NC HealthConnex, North Carolina’s state-managed health information exchange (HIE), was a finalist in the Digital Services: Government to Business category. This program, part of NCDIT’s Health Information Exchange Authority, provides the medical community with the data they need to make more informed decisions about patient care with nearly real-time clinical information that links to colleagues across North Carolina and travels seamlessly. With 98 percent of the state’s health care providers covered, it is one of the largest HIEs in the country.
MyNCDMV, a partnership with the N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and PayIt, was a finalist in the Digital Services: Government to Citizen category. MyNCDMV allows users to complete multiple services in one secure transaction, including renewing driver licenses and vehicle registrations, ordering license plates, purchasing duplicate licenses/ID cards and more, from a user-friendly web or mobile application.
The NASCIO Awards are held annually to recognize innovative technology solutions utilized by state governments. Each year, the government technology publication StateScoop and its parent company Scoop News honor top leaders and projects advancing government IT and cybersecurity with the StateScoop 50 Awards. This year, the publication recognized one N.C. project and one N.C. leader.
MyNCDMV was selected for the State IT Innovation of the Year Award for the innovative, digital approach to the Division of Motor Vehicles experience, creating something never seen before. Unlike the old way of completing NCDMV online services, myNCDMV allows users to complete multiple services in one secure transaction. The partnership has saved the state millions in mobile and web development costs. Implementation of the app was lead by NCDIT-Transportation employees Beverly Leathers and Jimbo Brumley.
Frank Winn was honored with the StateScoop State Leadership of the Year Award. Winn is NCDIT’s chief information officer for NCDOT and led the transition of the business side of NCDOT’s IT Division to NCDIT, the state’s centralized IT department. The move included approximately 500 employees, including teams in engineering application development, infrastructure, cybersecurity, architecture office, human resources, DMV application development, SAP ERP, web development, Geographic Information Systems and the Project Management Office. Winn’s team also oversaw the implementation of the myNCDMV app.