Sunday, October 15

Monday, October 16

Neal Petersen is a South African-born adventurer, business executive and author whose life story reflects the powerful message he delivers in his presentations: "In life there are no barriers - only solutions!"

Born in Cape Town, Neal grew up in the grip of apartheid, classified as "coloured" and subject to arrest if he didn't follow the system's segregationist rules. Racism wasn't his only challenge; he also was born with a defective hip. But Neal would turn these barriers into doorways. In 1999, he completed the Around Alone, a 27,000-mile round-the-world sailing race. He did so in his 40-foot home-built boat which some dubbed "the floating coffin" because of its small size. Alone in this tiny boat, he sailed through the swirling Southern Ocean, battling building-sized waves that often smothered the boat - and even turned it upside down. He pressed on and eventually beat some of the most experienced and well-funded solo sailors in the world. His award-winning book, Journey of a Hope Merchant, documents his struggles and victories, before and after the race, as does a PBS documentary, No Barriers, the story of Neal Petersen.

Today, among his other pursuits, Neal is a founding partner and board member of Sequence Holdings, an investment bank and corporate advisory company headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina. In sharing his extraordinary adventures, Neal shows that dreams can be as powerful as an ocean wave, and that by having meaningful goals and an attitude in which "disadvantages become advantages," people can ride these waves to more success than they dreamed possible.

Brian Mefford, President and Chief Executive Officer, ConnectKentucky

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” - Henry Ford

Innovation is all around us. It sprouts up when you least expect it because conscientious public officials are determined to serve the needs of constituents, even when the odds are against them. Technology is an enabler of innovation and the CIO must be vigilant for opportunities to lead innovation. Innovations may only use technology to enable a major shift in thinking – the technology may not be innovative, but the application is. However state governments are often challenged by both the real and perceived obstacles to introducing meaningful innovations, when (in fact) most government regulations are more permissive than they first appear.

With the advent of widespread use of the internet and an improving budget outlook, now is the time to add innovation to the menu of skills desirable in achieving public purposes. Innovative thinking is the focus of this session, with the theme of partnerships to achieve results. Join us to learn about what innovative partnerships can actually achieve.

Michael Mittleman, Chief Information Officer, State of New York

The 50 US states continue to be the laboratory for the role of the government CIO worldwide. And, the role of the CIO has changed as the times demand - in the 1990s, the role was automation; around 2000, the role was remediation of systems for Y2K; at the turn of the Century, the role was demonstration of the emerging internet; and during the economic tough times that followed, the role was consolidation.

Once again, the role of the CIO is changing. What's next, and will the CIOs of the nation be ready? Many different types of positions have emerged, but with each change of state leadership, the question persists: 'are we doing this right?' Is the private sector a key ingredient to the question and what role should they play in empowering a state CIO? Experts from both the public and private sectors will come together to answer these questions while sharing insights into effectively implementing technology innovation to provide strategic support to the role of the state CIO and the constituents they serve.

Alan Strowd, Bureau Chief for the Medicaid Contract Management Office, Agency for Health Care Administration, State of Florida

Healthcare spending will continue to rise disproportionately relative to state budget priorities. The nation's governors, state legislators and Medicaid administrators clearly understand the healthcare crisis and fiscal impact to their states. Jointly financed by the states and the federal government, Medicaid is the largest source of federal funds to the states, accounting for 43 percent of all federal grants in aid. Medicaid spending now accounts for over 20 percent of total state spending and its annual growth has crowded out funding for other important programs delivered by states. Something must be done. Transforming Medicaid must involve the widespread adoption of interoperable health information technology. What innovations and best practices are being implemented today in the states? How can information technology help? What does a transformed Medicaid system look like?

Tuesday, October 17

Celia Sandys, granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill, is a respected authority on Churchill with a well established reputation as an expert on the life of her grandfather. She is the author of five books, trustee of the Churchill Centre and founder of Churchill Leadership Inc.

Celia traveled with her grandfather as a teenager and has met many of the political leaders that worked with him. In 2003, as part of the research for her book, Chasing Churchill, she retraced many of Churchill's worldwide political and private travels to meet with people who personally remember Sir Winston Churchill. Her book titled Churchill has been adopted as the official book of the Churchill museum in London and is the accompaniment to the major ITV/PBS serial for which Celia was the series consultant.

The full significance of Churchill, already heralded as the greatest leader of the 20th century, was brought to the forefront in the aftermath of September 11th, 2001. Celia was inundated with letters from the leaders of the day. They all held a central message; that it was to the words and inspiration of her grandfather that they had turned to for strength and guidance when faced with the leadership challenges presented by this unprecedented trauma. As a result, Celia was inspired to write her most recent book, We Shall Not Fail…the Inspiring Leadership of Winston Churchill.

PK Agarwal, Director, Department of Technology Services, State of California

In 2006, 36 governorships and the majority of state legislators and Congressional representatives are up for election. Change is inevitable and with change comes transition. Whether precipitated by elections, retirement or the revised goals of a maturing administration, citizen services and government operations should not be affected by political change and transition. This session will explore the underlying issues including: How is transition initiated? Are there accepted methodologies that can be used? How does the incumbent organization communicate support for critical IT projects? and What must be done to ensure that state services, revenue and other critical government operations are not disrupted?

Bill Willis, Deputy Chief Information Officer, State of North Carolina

As citizens migrate to conducting more business online, they have come to expect conveniences such as single sign-on and simple ways to manage their user IDs and passwords. Many private sector industries, such as the banking industry, have made significant progress in this area. States, all of which are expansive and complex entities, are examining how to move forward in managing citizens' identities across multiple agencies and governmental branches. This panel will help to provide states with a foundation for why enterprise identity management is vital to successful citizen services, emerging models for moving forward, and provide a look at what is possible for the future of a holistic approach to enterprise identity management.

Chris Ipsen, Enterprise Architect, Department of Information Technology, Nevada

Privacy has become the high-profile issue of the day as privacy compromises of personal information have occurred in both the public and private sectors. The safe-keeping of citizens' personal information, from their Social Security Numbers to their medical records, has become a priority for any organization that holds that information. With the enterprise view of state technology, the state CIO has unique expertise that can be a key part of a state's overall efforts to maintain the state's image as a good steward of citizens' personal information. This panel will provide valuable, "take home" ways for the CIO to have a positive impact on protecting citizen privacy. The panelists will address high-level concepts of data classification, privacy principles, the privacy domain of a state's enterprise architecture, data encryption and compliance.

Harry D. Raduege, Jr. Lieutenant General, USAF (Ret), Chairman, Deloitte Center for Network Innovation

In recent years, governments have been tested by hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, fires, epidemics and terrorist threats. Even internal incidents such as a building fire or a water main break can threaten the continuity of operations. State governments are in a challenging position as they not only have to keep their operations running, but have to also provide support and comfort to their citizens. Leveraging available IT assets plays a critical role in helping governments prepare for a variety of potential crisis situations, including utilizing preexisting business partners; setting up emergency standby services and hardware contracts; determining the staff that would be called upon with pertinent contact information, such as IT procurement staff; developing emergency purchasing guidelines for agencies; and having emergency response legislation in place. Preplanned operational collaboration of available IT assets between the federal, state, local levels and the private sector will be critical to the success of future disaster mitigation.

For the eighteenth consecutive year, NASCIO will honor outstanding achievement in the field of information technology through its Recognition Award Program. During this special evening, NASCIO will announce and recognize the winners in this program. In addition, the association will acknowledge outstanding individual achievement by honoring the recipient of NASCIO's Meritorious Service Award. The award recognizes achievements of a current state CIO for outstanding contributions to NASCIO and state government.

Business attire suggested

Wednesday, October 18

Join NASCIO staff and the state CIOs for informal roundtable discussions of current issues not otherwise covered on the conference agenda.

From the science behind the technology to the legal implications surrounding the issues, this forensic examination of NASCIO's 2006 annual conference sessions will allow CIOs and CLC members to engage in an interactive discussion that will take a closer look at critical topics at the forefront of state IT policy.

CSI Miami Beach will feature small group, topic-focused discussions and a fluid structure that encourages open dialogue. This format will facilitate a meaningful exchange of ideas between the public and private sector on subjects including change and transition, the evolving role of the CIO, Medicaid innovations, innovative partnerships, enterprise identity management, privacy and all-hazards preparedness.

This unique forum will challenge CIOs and corporate members to dissect today's emerging issues and map dynamic new avenues (DNA) for NASCIO's future exploration. The evidence is clear…it will be a crime to miss this interactive session.