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Customer Focus A service update newsletter for valued DAS customers V O L U M E Government’s Partner in Achieving Results Mollie Anderson, Director INSIDE THIS ISSUE: ISOR Site Ranked 2 New Printers 2 Winter Snow, Spring Clean-Up 3 Protect Your Identity 3 Know Your Numbers 3 Notes from the Information Security 4 Employment Application turn-around 5 AARP Recognition 5 News in Brief 6 Meeting Dates to Remember 6 Diversity Council 7 Recycling Award 8 Learn at PDS 8 Customer Focus is a bi-monthly update about the Department of Administrative Services for Iowa state government agencies. For more information about DAS, please visit our website at http:// das.iowa.gov/. This issue’s contributors: Larry Clark, Pam Dickey, Greg Fay, Leslie Grefe, Cindy Houlson, Bonita Lane, Grace Marino, Lise Melton, Debbie O’Leary, Alison Radl, Laura Riordan, Tim Ryburn, Mark Uhrin, Bill West. Contact the editor at Laura.Riordan@iowa.gov or 515242-5038. We encourage your feedback. 5 I S S U E 2 M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 0 8 The Greening of Government What’s the red-hot trend in both the public and private sector? Finding ways to go ‘green’ and operate business in a more environmentally friendly manner. In February Governor Culver issued Executive Order Number 6, which establishes a Green Government Initiative for Iowa and solidifies state government’s commitment to being a leader in this effort. Many agencies, including DAS, have already been implementing ways to go green. Below is an overview of a few of the programs and initiatives happening with in DAS so far. We are working to build a web page (http://das.iowa.gov/green) that acts as a directory for all of these programs, so you can readily see how green government is progressing. Green Buyer Webinars – On March 13 DAS Procurement Services hosted the first in a series of four online seminars (“webinars”) about green buying. The focus of this session was to look at examples of how routine purchasing decisions impact human health and the environment, and how responsible purchasing strategies can be incorporated into agencies’ buying decisions. The next session, Responsible Green Purchasing: Top MARK YOUR CALENDARS — UPCOMING GREEN DAYS Earth Day is April 22, 2008 Arbor Day is April 25, 2008 State Purchasing Agents attend a lunch ‘n’ learn webinar session on March 13 regarding green buying Ten Tricks of the Trade, is April 17 from 12 – 1:30 p.m. Sessions are free. To learn more or to sign up contact Debbie O’Leary at Debbie.Oleary@iowa.gov or 515-281-8384. Green Buyer website – A new page has been added to the DAS website to highlight all of the available contracts for green products, as well as other resources for environmentally responsible purchasing. Go to http:// das.gse.iowa.gov/greenbuyer/ index.html. Green Cleaning – By the end of March all buildings on the Capitol Complex and at the Iowa Laboratory Facility in Ankeny will be converted to using green cleaning products. Green cleaning products are not only better for the environment, but are also better for building occupants and the custodial staff. The Green Cleaning Initiative is possible through a partnership between DAS and Iowa Prison Industries, which is providing the new products. (Continued on page 7) CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 2 Iowa’s Sex Offender Registry website ranked 7th TopTenREVIEWS.com has recognized Iowa’s Sex Offender Registry website as the seventh ranked sex offender site in the nation. The website, built by DAS-Information Technology Enterprise, uses information from the Department of Public Safety to display Iowa sex offender registrant information to the public. The review states that “Iowa’s Sex Offender Registry is one of the easiest to use in the top ten ranked registries. It includes an interactive map with pop-up profile summaries, several un- precedented search filters, and e-mail updates. Adult victim offenders are easily differentiated from child victim offenders, a helpful feature for risk assessment and addressing the varied concerns of community members.” Additional comments include: “Iowa offers one of the most detailed search functions in the country,” and “The navigation bar on the Iowa site is one of the best. In just a few words Iowa gives you clear options.” The website allows users to perform either a basic or detailed search. Along with the registrant’s information such as current address, distinguishing marks, date of and specific offense, it also displays pictures of the registrant. Visitors to the website may search based on an address, and they may also elect to be notified of changes based on a registrant, a search or a location. Of the 75 websites for which DAS-ITE maintains statistics, it is consistently one of the 10 busiest sites. During January 2008 the site had almost 2 million page views. To view the site: http:// www.iowasexoffender.com/. New printers improve quality, speed, options DAS Print has installed several new printers in its copy centers around the Capitol Complex. Newer technologies in these machines result in cleaner, crisper print quality, improved running speeds, and increased file compatibility, so customers get high-end printing in half the time. The new printers work with PDF files, virtually eliminating compatibility issues experienced with older software. The new Océ machine prints the front and back of the page simultaneously, resulting in perfect registration (alignment) and printing twice the impressions at a time. Not only is this an improvement in speed and quality, but it is also a ‘green’ machine. The Océ runs with no toner waste; all toner is used in the printing process. In fact, DAS PRINT Grimes (Main Print Shop) Basement Floor 281-5231 all of the newly installed printers are Energy Star machines, meaning they have met energy efficiency guidelines established by the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy. DAS Print now also offers perfect binding, which is the binding process most often associated with paperback books. This offering replaces the tape binding done in the past. Perfect binding gives books or presentations a professional, finished appearance. Other new or improved offerings include: an additional high-end color printer to keep up with demand; inline saddle stitching on both color machines; saddle stitching on the blackand-white printer at the Lucas Building; and in-line folding at the Wallace Color Options ▪ Black-and-white ▪ Full color ▪ Highlight (twocolor) ▪ Large Format Hoover Mainframe Data Center (no direct orders to this copy center) Lucas Copy Center Ground Floor 281-3651 Wallace Copy Center Ground Floor 281-8044 ▪ Black-and-white ▪ Highlight (two- Binding Building. Another added feature is a two-color/ highlight color printer that will allow printing black and one additional “spot” color: blue, green or red. This expands capabilities in-house and offers disaster recovery for some of the services offered in the Hoover Data Center Print Shop, such as printing checks. All this new technology and increased capacity has improved the quality with no increase in cost to customers. In the upcoming months all of Print costs will be reviewed to see if there are savings that can be passed on to customers. Please look for upcoming announcements about other exciting new or improved services. Stitching ▪ Perfect binding ▪ Comb binding ▪ 3 hole drill ▪ Laminating ▪ Shrink-wrapping ▪ Saddle stitching ▪ Multiple-position ▪ 3 hole drill ▪ Multiple-position stapling Folding ▪ 3 panel ▪ In half ▪ Quarter fold ▪ Folding is automated off line stapling color) ▪ Black-and-white ▪ 3 hole drill ▪ Black-and-white ▪ 3 hole drill ▪ Saddle stitching ▪ In-line folding ORDER ONLINE AT http://nowprint.print.iastate.edu/nowprint/userhome.aspx?UrlSuffix=DAS CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 3 Record-setting winter results in challenges Protect your identity: Use correct travel forms for snow removal, a lot of clean-up for spring The State Accounting Enterprise of DAS modified the forms Did you know that for every snow “event” DAS Capitol Complex Maintenance crews go through 30-40 tons of salt and sand? Twice that amount is needed if it’s an ice event. With the extraordinary winter we’ve just experienced, DAS has used approximately 3-4 times the usually amount of salt and sand — and over 1,100 bags of ice melt — trying to keep the Complex cleared and safe. for travel payments and travel advances some time ago so Social Security Numbers are no longer required. Now the form asks for an Employee Vendor Number. Eliminating the SSN field is an important step in helping protect the identify of state employees. The employee vendor number is composed of two parts. The first part is 9 characters composed of part or the entire last name followed by part or all of the first name (and letters of the middle name if necessary). The second part is the last 2 digits of the employee’s SSN. For example, Jane Mary Doe with an SSN of 999-99-9912 would be DOEJANEMA12. DAS wishes to thank everyone for their patience and cooperation this winter through all of the snow and ice removal. The good news is, spring is finally getting closer! In addition to cleaning up the sand and salt that was used, CCM’s other plans for “spring cleaning” on the Capitol Complex include carpet cleaning, window washing and parking lot painting. State employees should make sure they are using the latest version of travel forms (available at http:// das.sae.iowa.gov/travel_relocation/travel_docs.html), and that they are filling out the forms correctly by NOT using their Social Security Numbers. From the Safety & Health Office: Know your numbers The American Heart Association recommends you know your blood pressure numbers. Do you know yours? DAS has a blood pressure machine located on Hoover 1st floor by the east exit door. The process is easy and free, and directions for use are posted by the machine. The machine is calibrated twice a year to ensure readings are accurate. Categories for Blood Pressure Levels in Adults (in mmHg, millimeters of mercury)1 Category Systolic (top number) Diastolic (bottom number) Less than 120 Less than 80 120–139 80–89 Stage 1 140–159 90–99 Stage 2 160 or higher 100 or higher Normal Prehypertension High blood pressure 1 For adults 18 and older who are not on medicine for high blood pressure; are not having a short-term serious illness; and do not have other conditions, such as diabetes and kidney disease. Note: When systolic and diastolic blood pressures fall into different categories, the higher category should be used to classify blood pressure level. For example, 160/80 mmHg would be stage 2 high blood pressure. CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 4 Notes from the Information Security Office The Information Security Office (ISO) operates as a utility for State of Iowa agencies. Some services such as distribution of training materials, outreach activities, risk assessments, security alert notifications, and incident response are provided to agencies as part of their utility membership. Additional services, such as web assessments, vulnerability assessments, penetration testing and intrusion detection systems are available to agencies for an additional fee. Additional Services available from the ISO Web Application Assessment - The web assessment examines web-based applications identifying potential vulnerabilities in the application which have the potential to compromise agency systems or disclose agency data to unauthorized users. Vulnerability Assessment & Penetration Testing - Vulnerability assessments identify the security weaknesses associated with a host or network while penetration testing attempts to exploit the discovered weaknesses to determine the full extent of the potential exploit. Administrative Investigations - The ISO can assist in examinations of agency computers in response to suspected misuse. Intrusion Detection Systems - The ISO offers a managed intrusion detection system (IDS) system for agencies that do not have the staffing to maintain their own IDS. Also, the ISO is responsible for developing security standards and policies. Security standards and regulations applicable to State of Iowa agencies are provided below, including enterprise standards, state law, and federal law. In addition, links to industry best practices are included. These standards and best practices provide guidance for protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of governmental information systems. Enterprise Information Security standards - Enterprise security policies and standards apply to all state agencies and provide a minimum level of security that is consistently applied across agencies. Standard Effective Date Enterprise Information Security Policy 2/9/2006 Enterprise Wireless LAN Standard 7/13/2006 Enterprise Data Classification Standard 8/1/2007 Enterprise Laptop Data Protection Standard 12/31/2007 Enterprise Removable Storage Encryption Standard 12/31/2007 Enterprise Interconnectivity Standard 10/31/2007 Enterprise Shared Authentication Standard Extension 11/1/2007 3/31/2008 7/2/2007 If you have any questions about ISO services, standards and policies, please contact us at ciso@iowa.gov or 515-2814820. Risk Assessment Updates In the spring of 2007 the Information Security Office conducted agency risk assessments to help agencies understand the risks they face and establish a security baseline for the state. More than 40 agencies participated in these assessments. Agency security policies, asset management, physical security, and incident management were just a few of the areas reviewed during the risk assessment. Starting in February 2008, ISO staff will be meeting with agencies to update their risk assessments. The follow-up reviews will measure the improvements agencies made over the past year. For more information, please contact Alison Radl at Alison.Radl@iowa.gov. CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 5 Employment applications get quick turn-around Number of hiring lists issued per week Hiring lists contain names of candidates who meet the minimum qualifications for a specific job vacancy The DAS-HRE Employment Services Bureau tracks the amount of time it takes to issue lists of qualified applicants to departments. Staff reviews each application for employment, issues notices to the applicants, and answers any questions that come from either the applicant or the hiring department. While the review of some applications is fairly straight forward, such as a simple education requirement, many applications require review to determine whether the minimum qualification can be met by a combination of education and experience, and in some cases special requirements for the vacancy. This involves reviewing each résumé or the experience and education forms in the applicant tracking system (BrassRing) to determine if the job candidate is qualified. On average, DAS-HRE processes nearly 8,000 applications per month. The following chart shows how many hire lists were issued beginning the week of October 5, 2007, through February 1, 2008. The standard goal is two days. The average turnaround time from the closing date of the vacancy is 1.2 days. Week Ending Date DAS receives SCSEP recognition for partnership with AARP program The Department of Administrative Services has received an award from the AARP Foundation, being named “Outstanding SCSEP Host Agency Partnership” for 2007. SCSEP stands for the “Senior Community Services Employment Program.” DAS received this recognition for employing seniors in our custodial operations throughout the year. Custodial frontline lead workers Marsha Small and James Murrell, who are responsible for training AARP custodians, were also recognized for their efforts in training and development initiatives. The recognition ceremony took place on February 4, 2008, with the presentation of the plaque by Charles Schwab, program director of the Central Iowa SCSEP Office. CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 6 News in Brief Iowa School Alerts nominated for award The Department of Administrative Services’ Iowa School Alerts application was named a finalist for the prestigious 2008 Technology Association of Iowa Prometheus Award for “Best New Innovation in Government.” The Prometheus Awards, recognized as Iowa's largest and most prestigious technology awards, are devoted to promoting and celebrating innovation and high-tech excellence in Iowa. Iowa School Alerts provides a webbased system to accept and distribute notifications about school closing events. The system was developed to simplify communications when schools must adjust their school day due to weather or other factors. This service was made available to all schools, citizens and media outlets for the 2007-08 school year. Since the September roll-out, 182 of the state’s 354 school districts have enrolled more than 590 facilities. There are currently more than 8,000 individual accounts and the system has delivered over 53,000 mailings. Iowa School Alerts, offered free to schools and subscribers, is funded by IOWAccess. Robert Bailey new DAS PIO Robert Bailey joined DAS on February 11 as the new Public Information Officer / Communications Director. Bailey has experience in both the public and private sector, most recently working at Flynn Wright, Inc. He can be reached at 515-2817056 or robert.bailey@iowa.gov. Meeting Dates to Remember (remainder of March & April) General Services Technology Governance Board Thursday, April 10, 3-5 p.m. April meeting cancelled Hoover Bldg, Level A, Conf. Rm. 7 & 8 Customer Councils Human Resources Tentative: Wednesday, April 2, 1:30—3:30 p.m. Hoover Level A, Conf. Rm. 5 I/3 Thursday, April 10, 1:30-3:30 p.m. IT RFP Advisory Group meeting Wednesday, March 26, 3-4 p.m. Wednesday, April 23, 3-4 p.m. Hoover Bldg, Level B, Conf. Rm. 2 & 3 Hoover Bldg, Level B, Conf. Rms 2&3 IT Standards Advisory Group meeting Thursday, April 3, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Technology Hoover Bldg, Level A, Conf. Rm. 6 Tuesday, April 8, 1-3 p.m. Hoover Bldg, Level A, Conf. Rm. 7 For Customer Council information: http://das.iowa.gov/customer_councils/index.html or contact Laura Riordan at 515-242-5038. Vertical Infrastructure Committee Thursday, April 10, 10 a.m.—2 p.m. Location: TBD Capitol Planning Commission Wednesday, April 16, 8:30 a.m.—12 noon DPS Building, Room 125 Next regularly scheduled CPC meetings: July 16, October 15 CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE 7 Green Government, continued (Continued from page 1) Free cooling – It’s not literally “free,” but the process of free cooling by utilizing a heat exchanger in combination with a dry cooler (got all that?) produces chilled water for cooling systems without running chillers. The Capitol Complex now has one of these systems in place. On days when temperatures are below 32 degrees Fahrenheit the State saves $30.04 per hour, or $720.96 per day. It also reduces energy consumption by eliminating the use of water chillers. Online evaluations = less paper – The general DAS customer satisfaction survey moved to an online, paperless version a couple of years ago, and now surveys for PDS (Performance & Development Solutions) courses are going paperless as well. In Fiscal year 2007, PDS processed over 5,500 course evaluations, and another 3,000 so far in FY2008. In order to reduce paper usage and required data entry, PDS is introducing electronic course evaluations. After an individual attends a PDS workshop, they receive an e-mail with a web link to an electronic course evaluation. Shedding some light on energy conservation – 1,200 conventional incandescent light bulbs were replaced with the newest generation of cold cathode compact fluorescent bulbs in the Capitol dome and the House and Senate chambers. In addition to conserving energy and limiting the amount of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere, the lifetime savings to Iowa taxpayers is $30,152. Recycling used inkjet and toner cartridges – Directions were recently sent to agency purchasing agents regarding how to return used cartridges of any brand to OfficeMax for recycling. Contact Dave Kaili in DAS Procurement Services for more information: 515-281-4774 / Dave.Kaili@iowa.gov. These are just a few of the green projects currently underway. Continue to check our website and newsletters for updates, and let us know if you think there is something DAS can be doing to create a greener government in your agency. Diversity Council holds first meetings Executive Order Number 4, issued by Governor Culver, created a state Diversity Council to review policies, procedures and practices related to diversity in state government and develop recommendations for improvements. ▪ Members have been appointed and the Council has begun meeting, with its first report due to the Governor this summer. ▪ Members of the Diversity Council are: ▪ Mollie Anderson, Director, Iowa Department of Administrative Services (DAS) ▪ Nancy Berggren, Chief Operating Officer, DAS – Human Resources Enterprise ▪ Preston Daniels, Program Director, Employee and Family Resources — Chair of Diversity Council ▪ Renee Hardman, Senior Vice President – Human Resources, Bankers Trust ▪ Shirley Hicks, Teacher (retired), Iowa School for the Deaf ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ Reginald Jackson, Corporate Attorney, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Robin Jenkins, Recruitment Coordinator, DAS – Human Resources Enterprise Jim Larew, General Counsel and Policy Director, Governor’s Office Miguel Moreno, Highway Technician, Iowa Department of Transportation Alba Perez, Diversity Development Director, Greater Des Moines Partnership Walter Reed, Jr., Director, Iowa Department of Human Rights Ralph Rosenberg, Director, Iowa Civil Rights Commission Jonathan Thorup, Fire Prevention Inspector, Iowa Department of Public Safety Miriam Tyson, Entrepreneurial Liaison, Iowa Department of Economic Development Dinh VanLo, Executive Director, Tai Village Stephen Wooderson, Director, Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services CUSTOMER FOCUS ~ MAR/APR 2008 PAGE Recycling Excellence Award Congratulations to all state agencies and the DAS Capitol Complex Maintenance team for once again receiving the Certificate of Recognition for Recycling Excellence from MidAmerica Recycling. In 2007, Iowa state government recycled 210.93 paper tons, saving 3,586 trees, 1,476,510 gallons of water; 12,656 pounds of air pollution; 864,813 kilowatt hours of electricity; and 696 cubic yards of landfill space. Thanks and way to go! TRAINING AS A REWARD? In a time where bonuses are increasingly difficult to receive due to public scrutiny, we must find ways to reward and retain top performers. Rather than struggling with the bureaucracy of a one-time monetary bonus, consider a training bonus -- the opportunity to learn and grow throughout the year. Development programs such as Iowa’s Certified Public Manager (CPM) Program, the Applied Management Series (AMS) Certificate, or the Administrative Assistant Certificate can all be used to reward employees, providing them an opportunity to challenge their minds and interact and learn from others from various organizations. Just as much as training can be used to reform or change behaviors, it can (and should) also be used as a motivator – helping people take their skills to the next level for your organization. CERTIFIED PUBLIC MANAGER 17 month nationally accredited program 2 seven-hour sessions/month 4 areas of competency 9 hours graduate credit at Drake U. $3500; payment plans available Next cohort begins July 2008 Applications due by June 1, 2008 APPLIED MANAGEMENT SERIES ADMINISTRATIVE CERTIFICATE 5 core courses (ethics, conflict communication, leadership, and customer service) 8 essential HR policy classes 3 years to complete $80-175 per class; pay as you go Ongoing course offerings Open enrollment 10 business and communication courses 5 electives (computer, time management, or creativity) 3 years to complete $110-225 per class; pay as you go Ongoing course offerings Open enrollment For more information on how you can make training a reward for your employees, please contact Performance & Development Solutions, the training provider for the State of Iowa. Performance & Development Solutions Iowa Department of Administrative Services t Human Resources Enterprise Website: http://www.das.hre.iowa.gov/LearnAtPDS/ t Phone: (515) 725-2051 t Email: pds@iowa.gov 8