HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 12141999 - D2 M1
Tt7: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
FROM: PHIL BATCHELOR
County Administrator
DATE: December 14, 1999
SUBJECT: Transfer of Telecommunications to Department of Information Technology
Specific Request(s) or Recommendations(s) & Background & Justification Resolution: 99i653
RECOMMENDATION:
1. ACKNOWLEDGE that C.S.I. Telecommunications, an independent consultant, conducted an analysis of
the Telecommunications Division and recommended that the entire unit be transferred to the Department
of Information Technology and that such a move should increase the productivity and effectiveness of
the Division, as well as provide a higher level of integrated voice/data services to all County users.
2. ACKNOWLEDGE that an audit team, commissioned by the County Administrator, recommended that
due to the increasingly computerized nature of communications technology, the County's
communications infrastructure should be modified to integrate the management of voice and data
systems under one manager, and that the Telecommunications Division should be transferred from the
General Services Department to the Department of information Technology.
3. ACKNOWLEDGE that the County Administrator met with the Telecommunications staff to solicit their
input on the proposed transfer and that the staff overwhelmingly agreed to the transfer.
4. ACCEPT this report from the County Administrator and APPROVE the transfer of the Telecommunications
Division from General Services to the Department of Information Technology effective January 1, 2000.
5. AUTHORIZE the Director of Human Resources to transfer, effective January 1, 2000,
Telecommunications (0060) and positions with incumbents from Agency 66 to Agency 03 to include:
Telephone Maintenance Position Number(s)
Telecommunications Maintenance Manager 1927
Lead Telecommunications Technician 1944
Information Systems Technician 1 1931
Telecommunications Technicians 1928, 1956, 1957, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2016
Radio Communications
Senior Communications Equipment Technician 1929
Communications Equipment Technicians 1926, 1930, 1933
Telecommunications
Clerk-Senior Level 1789
CONTINUED ON ATTAP4f X YES
Signature: -
Recommendation of County Administrator
Recommendation of Board Committee
Approve Other
Si natures
Action of Board Comm: LApproved as Recommended r
Vote of Supervisors: i HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE
AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN
Unanimous(Absent&L&d AND ENTEREDAN THE MINUTES OF THE
Ayes:_ Noes: BOARD OF PEOVISORS ON DATE SHOWN.
Absent: Abstain:
_ Attested
cc: CAO Phil Batchelor, Clerk of the Board of
Department of Information Technology of Sup rvisors andy Administrator
General Services ✓ ;'
Human Resources Director By: DEPUTY
Auditor Controller
Contact: George Roemer 335-1055
Page Two (2)
December 14, 1999
6. AUTHORIZE the Director of Human Resources to transfer, effective January 1, 2000, Electronic
Equipment Technician, position # 1932, from Telecommunications (0060) to Building Maintenance
(0079) and Clerk-Experienced Level, position # 6404, from Building Maintenance (0079) to
Telecommunications (0060).
7. AUTHORIZE the Auditor-Controller to transfer Budget Unit 0060, including all FY 99/00 appropriations,
expenditures and revenues, from Agency 66 (General Services) to Agency 03 (County Administrator)
effective January 1, 2000.
8. AUTHORIZE the Auditor--Controller to transfer Orgs. 4309, 4321, 4322 and other funds, accounts and
contracts related to Telecommunications, from General Services to Department of Information
Technology, and DIRECT the County Administrator to recommend to the Board any other actions
required for the transfer of the Telecommunications Division.
9. AUTHORIZE the transfer of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) License Grants for all
agencies under the control of the Board of Supervisors, from the Director of General Services to the Chief
Information Officer. All FCC license applications for any agency under the control of the Board of
Supervisors shall only be applied for and signed by the Chief Information Officer or designee.
10.AUTHORIZE the Telecommunications Division, its equipment, materials, vehicles, and shop facilities
to remain where they are presently situated.
11.ACKNOWLEDGE that the Board approved Memorandum of Understanding with Local 1, effective
October 1, 1999, contains a provision requiring the County to complete a study of the organization of
work and the classifications in the Communications Division, and classifications of Electronic Equipment
Technician and Lead Electronic Equipment Technician in Building Maintenance Division by January 1,
2000.
12.DIRECT the Director of Human Resources to report back with recommendations for Board action
resulting from the study of the organization of work and the classifications in the Communications
Division by January 15, 2000.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
None. The County-wide net cost will not change with this transfer of administrative responsibility.
REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION/BACKGROUND:
Voice and data technologies are converging at a rapid pace. The trend in automation is toward integrated,
enterprise-wide networks utilizing the telecommunications infrastructure. Concurrently, digital data has
assumed greater importance than voice in the communication of information. In the future, there will be
no distinction between voice and data. These trends require that automation and telecommunications
functions be administered by a single entity for maximum efficiency.
Contra Costa County currently has the General Services Department and the Department of Information
Technology providing telecommunication and data services separately. This has created a divergence of
services rather than a convergence. By combining telephony and data infrastructures, Contra Costa County's
network will be easier to manage, expand, and over time, may be less costly.
Currently, the Telecommunications Division operates under the General Services Department and manages
the County's communications systems including telephone, microwave, radio and alarm, and provides
installation and maintenance of radio systems for police agencies, special districts, medical facilities, and
cities. The division has a staff of 16, organized into three functional areas: data, radio and
telecommunications. It has an annual operating budget of approximately $4.1 million and is funded through
service charges.
In November 1997, the County Administrator commissioned an audit team to conduct a performance review
of the General Services Department. The Audit Team findings and recommendations were intended to assist
the General Services Department in improving service delivery to customers, as well as meeting future
challenges. The audit report recommended that due to the increasingly computerized nature of
communications technology, the County's communications infrastructure should be modified to integrate
the management of voice and data systems under one manager. Further, it was recommended that the entire
RESOLUTION NO. 99/653
Page Three (3)
December 14, 1999
Telecommunications Division be transferred from the Generali Services Department to the Department of
Information Technology.
As a result of the audit report, the County Administrator, with the cooperation of the Director of General
Services and the Director of Information Technology, agreed to hire an independent consultant to do an
analysis of the Telecommunications Division and to make a recommendation on organizational structure.
All parties agreed that C.S.I. Telecommunications was qualified as the consultant.
The consultant's report, submitted in August 1999, reiterated that technology trends promise a rapid
convergence of voiceldata, and wireless networks within the next three to five years. The report concluded
that by having two separate organizations providing communications services, Contra Costa County lacks
the single integrated organizational unit necessary to plan and implement complex voice/data systems,
develop budgets and allocate resources among competing users.
Additionally, the consultant's report identified many positive aspects associated with combining the Telecom
group with the Department of Information Technology:
1. A single point of contact for Telecommunications and Data services can be established to provide
better services to the end-users.
2. A single management structure for all telecommunications and data within the County will combine
voice, data, wireless and all transmission technologies under a singular department.
3. Technicians career development/training can be enhanced and expanded to include data services that
will not only enable the County to proactively look into the future but also will help with employee
retention.
4. By combining the two organizations, the Department of Information Technology Group can easily take
advantage of the new upcoming technology which will not only reduce/contain costs, but also provide
a better service to the end-users.
5. As wireless data technologies emerge, the single group will be responsible for them.
6. Create an integrated planning, budgeting, and resource utilization organization.
RESOLUTION NO. 99/653