History of Information Technology Policy
On this and most weeks, each student will present their topical reading, with handouts for the class, and the instructor will present a lecture based on recent developments since publication of the texts. Make sure the handout provides a full bibliographical citation for your reading.
A Brief History of Public-Sector Information Technology Policy
War and Cold War: Origins of information technology infrastructure in the United States
Establishing the architecture of federal information policy, 1946-1980
From BITNET to FirstGov: Growth of the Internet, 1981 - 2000
Policy issues in the information age, 1986 - 2005
Securing e-government, 1986 - 2005
Building the virtual state, 1990 - 2005
Summary
Discussion Questions on Garson, Chapter 1
1. McLuhan introduced the concept of the Global Village in the 1960's in response to what he foresaw occurring as electronic media (television) replaced printed media. Give one present day example for each of the four change processes shown in Figure 1-2 and explain your reasoning.
2. McLuhan's concept of the "Global Village' and Hiltz and Turoff's concept of a "Network Nation" shared common assumptions but also differed in important respects. What were the similarities and differences?
3. In Hiltz and Turoff's 1993 revision of The Network Nation they acknowledged one major mistake. What was that mistake? How would things be different if they had been correct in their original assumption?
4. Has Toffler's vision of the "Electronic Cottage" come to fruition? What is the implication of of the electronic cottage in terms of mass culture? in terms of organizational management?
5. According to Castells, why is it important for both labor and management to pay attention to the design of information systems? Use the five general themes of critical theory to help explain.
6. Eger points to urban sprawl as leading to the decay of cities. How do smart communities
address this problem? How effectively, in your opinion?
7. Horan emphasizes the importance humans place on attaching meaning to physical places. With this in mind, what are the implications for the design of 'digital places'?
8. What is the difference between 'e government' and 'e governance'? How does public administration change with the advent of e governance according to Jane Fountain?
9. President Bush's President's Management Agenda initiative found that the $45 billion of federal IT expenses had not produced measurable gains in public sector productivity. What reason did they attribute to this? What remedy was promoted by initiative?
10. Describe the four stages of e governance as described by Seifert and the Gartner Group.
Discussion Questions on Garson, Chapter 2
1. What is the main purpose of a business plan in the private sector? How is this similar to and different from a public sector business plan?
2. The OMB's requirement that federal agencies submit business plans for IT projects was an effort to ensure that decisions were guided by an overall vision and architecture that would support key business values. What advantages and/or pitfalls to you see to this strategy?
3. Under what circumstances might just in time methods apply to the public sector?
4. What factors other than IT investment might account for the economic prosperity of the 1990s, according to economists?
5. What are the pros and cons of government sanctioned standardization of software across agencies?
6. When are public private partnerships most appropriate? Least?
7. Identify three reasons why e business models might not work well at a broad level within the public sector.
8. Which e business models have the most promise within the public sector?
9. How has the funding experience of e government projects changed recently? What implications does this have for the future of e-government?
10. What is the risk of relying on "cookie cutter" business plan templates? Even when good business models are employed, what challenges face the public sector?