Bull implements a unifying EDM project to support local initiatives
For the Tarn region of France, delivering efficient public services inevitably involves e-government. Against a backdrop of strong fiscal pressure and changing responsibilities for the regional authorities, the regional Council of Tarn is committed to a highly proactive policy of e-government and modernizing its administrative structures. With one major goal: to deliver public services that are more responsive to its citizens’ expectations.
At a time when everyone is taking about insecurity in social and business life, simplifying information exchanges between the Regional Council’s different departments, its partners and citizens has become an absolute priority.
The e-government roadmap: putting social action first
Championed by a dedicated department within the Councils’ Directorate for cross-functional policies and citizenship, e-government is the subject of a global project that will be rolled out gradually over the next four years. Following an initial phase which considered how to improve the region’s initiatives, several modernization programs have been launched, covering areas such as social services, HR, finance and deliberations. Future projects, which combine technological innovation with a new, cross-functional view of the regional authority, will involve e-government portals, multi-channel user access and on-line procedures.
The key success of this cross-functional approach is Electronic Document Management (EDM): a decisive step for the Council. Eventually, EDM will enable the entire information lifecycle to be managed in a unified way, ensuring that the target timescales for processing claims are met, as well as providing archiving, security and a global view of each claimant.
Elder people and those with disabilities will be the first to benefit from the fact that documents are going digital, as EDM is integrated with the Genesis solution from Bull subsidiary Sirus, which is dedicated to social programs. Over 40,000 claim files will be digitized, making them accessible to other business applications. They will also benefit from a secure information portal, designed with the Council’s numerous partners including other public sector bodies, coordinators, charities and service providers. This tool will help improve the exchange of information with partners and ensure that the local authority is more ‘humane’.
Governance, modernization and interoperability
Following a competitive tendering process, the Regional Council of Tarn has awarded Bull the entire EDM implementation project, based around EMC’s Documentum solution. According to Olivier Lafosse, the Tarn’s Director of e-Government: “Initially our aim is to focus on our core business as a Regional Authority. It was essential to find ourselves a recognized systems integrator for this kind of project, who is capable of providing us with a high level of expertise and supporting us in the reengineering of our business processes where they cross over between all our functions.”
The project is being sponsored by a collective group of interests. So Bull will be using a highly participative methodology – involving ten working parties – to define the functional scope of the processes, without hesitating to rethink either organization structures or working practices. Extremely rapid and iterative development cycles will enable the information systems to be aligned very quickly. “The extremely strong relationship of trust between all those involved, and the participation of the business functions and civil servants have been essential to the success of this first stage of the project. Bull has enabled us to establish a real project culture,” explains Olivier Lafosse.
After the social services area, EDM will gradually be extended to other applications at the Council. New functionality with a significant legal aspect – such as e-signature, time/date stamping and archiving of material with probative value – will complete the overall system.
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