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Center for Shared Solutions: 2008 Project Update David Fox, Neil Miros, Allan DeKoninck Michigan Department of Information Technology. Background. MDIT Formed 7 years ago Consolidation of Computer rooms Consolidation of Network services Consolidation of Technical services
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Center for Shared Solutions:2008 Project Update David Fox, Neil Miros, Allan DeKoninckMichigan Department of Information Technology
Background • MDIT • Formed 7 years ago • Consolidation of Computer rooms • Consolidation of Network services • Consolidation of Technical services • Agency services remained fairly siloed • Resulting in • Multiple services doing the same thing • Same service – multiple licenses scattered around the State • Multiple versions of services • Some agencies having to do without on some critical and potentially beneficial applications.
Agency Services • 2007 – Creation of Privacy and Business Intelligence Competency Center (PBICC) announced • Focus on Shared Solutions as a means to realize some advantages for agencies • Address cleansing and standardization • Reporting and queries • Data movement, Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) tools
Shared Solutions Address Cleansing
Why is Address Cleansing Necessary? • Federal Requirement that all payments must go to a physical address. • Need to verify that the address really exists to help guard against fraud. • Every system collected and stored it’s own copy of an address. • Many systems out there. • Each one storing it’s own version of a particular address.
Why is Address Cleansing Necessary? • Multiple versions of the same address • Even within the same application • 123 S. Main St. • 123 South Main St. • 123 South Main Street • 123 S. Main Street • 123 S. Main • 123 South Main We needed a way to get to one verified, clean address in a standard format.
What’s the Toolset? • Address Cleansing has had many names. • PostalSoft • Was bought out by FirstLogic and became IQ8 • Was bought out by Business Objects and became Data Quality XI • Was bought out by SAP, but still called Data Quality XI (or DQ XI)
How is it used? • DQ XI gets updates for US Addresses every 45 days • DQ XI gets updates for Canadian Addresses every 30 days • Addresses are “scrubbed” and verified. • Returned to the requesting application in one common format. Example: 123 S. Main St.
How is it used? • Geocoding • Along with the “scrubbed” address comes longitude and latitude which can be used for coding those really cool maps.
How is it used? • DQ XI - Batch and/or Real Time processing. • Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) – real time • Michigan Child Support Enforcement System (MiCSES) - batch • DHS – ASSIST – real time and batch • DHS – BRIDGES – also uses DQ XI
What’s happening now? • We’re working with DHS & UIA to stand up the servers and get the DQ XI software loaded. • New processes to navigate • EA Assessment • Admin rights to the servers for software setup • “Discussions” with Office of Enterprise Security • Proper zoning
What’s happening now? • Meeting with SAP/Business Objects to find out everything the software can do. • SAP/Bus. Obj. provided demo just last week.
What’s happening now? • Meeting with potential next partners to discuss their needs. • Department of Agriculture • House of Representatives • Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) • Department of Community Health (DCH) • Michigan State Police (MSP) • Michigan Business Services improvement initiative (MBSii)
What’s Next? • Our intention is to stand up the service and offer it as a “Rated Service”. • No up-front agency costs • Follow CGI model? • Scalable • Add servers to create Development & Testing Environments. • Set up team to assist clients with additional resources.
How will it work? • It’s intended to work as a “Black Box.” • Call it as a Web Service. • Send to DQ XI a list of parameters. • Application “scrubs & verifies” the address information. • Returns address and other “known” information such as longitude/latitude and geo-spatial information.
Lessons Learned • Lots of them…. • Working with “borrowed” employees • Initial setup costs (up front money) • Security rules • Working on a moving machine
Shared Solutions Query & Reporting
Query & Reporting • Accomplishments for 2008 • Currently supporting 2,800+ users • Management Information database (MIDB) • MiPlan • Higher Education Institutional Data Inventory (HEIDI) • MDOT – PLRS reporting • Connections to different databases • Oracle, Teradata, SQL Server • Complete Security Setup
Query & Reporting • Benefits • Able to run reports and queries from different data sources. • Consolidated and converted Business Objects licenses from Professional to Premium. • Web Intelligence • Crystal Reports • Xcelsius
Query & Reporting • Concerns and issues found • Locating Common Maintenance window. • Lack of Business Objects configuration knowledge • Understanding different database drivers. • Understanding different Business Objects versions. • Installing Hot Fixes and Critical Packs.
Query & Reporting • Future connections • Currently working with the following agencies: • Dept of Transportation (MDOT) • Attorney General (AG) • CGI - TAMC • Dept of Labor & Economic Growth (DLEG – MSHDA) • Dept of Environmental Quality (DEQ) • Dept of Natural Resources (DNR) • Michigan Dept of Agriculture (MDA) • Dept of Human Service (DHS) • More…
Query & Reporting • Deliverables for 2009 • Training of additional Designer developers. • Rollout Business Objects XI-R2 SP3 Desktop Intelligence, but will become obsolete. • Rollout Business Objects Web Intelligence. • Rollout Crystal Reports. • Rollout Xcelsius.
Lessons Learned • Contractor “knowledge transfer” valuable. • Continually keep system support staff in loop. • Acquire training for key staff early. • Acquire necessary tools for support. • Early users problems with installs. • Security rules.
Shared Solutions Data movement aka ETL tools
Accomplishments • Proof of Concept for Treasury completed • Setup server • Files from IRS • 26 files • 53 million records • ESKORT project • Utilized Information Analyzer tool to determine quality of data being loaded to the data warehouse.
Benefits • 80% savings in runtime • Days vs. months in development effort • Reduced cost of ownership by agencies • One product to maintain vs. several
Deliverables for 2009 • Test server • Production server • Rated service pricing model • Establish governance for the ETL team • Expand service to additional agencies • Evaluate additional tools for the ETL product including SAFE software for CGI applications.
Expectations for the future • Tuning performance • Development of processes to add new clients quickly • Add connectivity / add-ins / functionality as appropriate to meet growing needs of client areas • Explore ways to leverage the technology in other areas in MDIT
Lessons Learned • Security • Need to limit access to sensitive information. • Scalability • Service must be able to grow with the demand • Size • How do you pick the right size out of the gate? • Initial Funding
Center for Shared Solutions • Partnerships with • Enterprise Architecture • Office of Enterprise Security • Tech Services • Agency Services • Vendors • Bull Services • IBM • Sun • SAP / Business Objects • CTTS
Sign me up? (check on audience) • Think you might have an application that could use one or more of these services? Contact one of the following to get more information?