The GFOA's Technology Resource Group.

• Author: VIECELI, JEFFERY
• Position: Government Financial Officers Association

Technology is advancing so rapidly that few can keep up with it. It has become so pervasive in our daily lives that it is easy to take for granted. New hardware and software developments are changing how we shop, how we bank, how we learn, and how we collect and distribute information. It was inevitable that governments also would need to, indeed be forced to, adopt new technology to serve an ever knowledgeable and technologically savvy constituency.

Because of the advancement of technology into all aspects of government including the financial management arena, the GFOA Executive Board created the Technology Resource Group (TRG) in March 1998.

This article will focus on the mandate for the creation of the TRG as well as its mission and goals. The article also will present a description of TRG's activities, progress to date, and future role.

The Beginning

Information Technology in government has become something more than just the acquisition of new hardware every few years--it is a major component of governmental budgeting and strategic planning. Because of this, government finance professionals are forced to balance the need for change with the cost, risk, and challenge of implementing new technology. Unfortunately, there are not many independent, experienced, and reliable mechanisms for helping governments make these decisions.

Recognizing this, the Executive Board of the GFOA created a technology task force to investigate areas in the evolving technology arena that the GFOA should focus upon. The task force in turn came up with several suggestions for the advancement and communication of technology issues to the GFOA membership as a whole. One of the recommendations made by the task force was to "establish a standing committee on information technology."

The recommendations of the task force were brought back to the GFOA staff management committee for action. In March 1998, the staff management committee recommended to the Executive Board that the Technology Resource Group be formed to meet the mandate of the Executive Board. With the conditional approval of the Executive Board for an initial trial period of two years, the TRG was formed.

The Mission

The main reason for the creation of the TRG was to provide direction to the finance profession on emerging technologies in government and finance. The original intent was that the TRG would provide information on new hardware and software developments as well as provide guidance for best...