IT application in management and operation: Overcoming shortcomings

(Baonghean) - Step by step computerization and application of information technology in management and operation is one of the goals of office modernization for administrative reform. This policy has been implemented quite vigorously in our province, initially creating positive changes in administrative reform. However, in reality, the application is still not synchronous, people have not enjoyed full public services and managers are still confused...

Application of information technology in management and operation at the Department of Planning and Investment.

Initial change

In recent years, implementing the Government's regulations on the policy of modernizing offices, Nghe An has issued Resolution No. 10-NQ/TU dated July 4, 2007 of the Standing Committee of Nghe An Provincial Party Committee on promoting the application and development of IT until 2010 and orientation to 2020, Decision No. 526/QD-UBND on adjusting the planning for the application and development of information technology in Nghe An province until 2020. Accordingly, by 2020, the work handling processes within administrative agencies, the coordination relationship between agencies will be gradually computerized, state management work will be integrated and interconnected, synchronously linked from the province, district to commune; directing and urging agencies and units to increase the use of electronic documents.

Up to now, the province's official mail system has 65 active domain names; 100% of cadres and civil servants of provincial departments, branches and sectors and district People's Committees have been provided with email boxes to exchange work; the rate of documents exchanged by units via the official mail system across the province is currently stable, reaching between 65-68%. The provincial official mail system has been upgraded from 50MB to 300MB, meeting the exploitation and usage needs of cadres and civil servants. The application and conversion of the quality management system according to the ISO process to the TCVN 9001:2008 version has been implemented quite well. Currently, 57/59 agencies and units have implemented the conversion. Agencies and units that have not yet completed shall continue to implement according to the requirements in Decision No. 37/QD-UBND and Decision No. 19/2014/QD-TTg dated March 5, 2014 of the Prime Minister.

Infrastructure and working equipment have been invested in and upgraded by sectors and levels to meet the requirements of modernizing offices. Vertical sectors including the Provincial Police, the Tax Department, and the State Treasury have invested a large amount of money to build headquarters, renovate and upgrade working equipment for district-level units. The Provincial People's Committee has focused on organizing conferences, meetings, interim and final reviews in the form of online television. The number of meetings, conferences, and task deployment meetings organized via online television system in 2012 was 9, in 2013 was 11, and the plan for 2014 is to organize 28 meetings, of which 7 were organized in the first 6 months of 2014.

Many departments and branches have used information technology software to support management, operation, and public service implementation and have shown their usefulness and savings. Currently, document management and operation software has been deployed in many agencies and units such as: M-Office, E-Office, OSP-iDOC, Tabmis,... Some units use vertical industry software: Department of Education and Training, Customs Department, Social Insurance, Tax Department, Provincial Police.

The Department of Planning and Investment has applied OSP-iDOC software for management and operation. This software has a text search feature, an easy-to-use interface, and the ability to expand and connect with other systems. Mr. Nguyen Doan Hung - Deputy Head of the General Planning Department of the Department of Planning and Investment said: "The software is very convenient, can be widely exploited to search for documents. Leaders assign tasks online, can still manage when on business trips, and also saves on office supplies."

Nghe An Tax Department has conducted online tax declaration, electronic tax payment, and is one of the top 3 units in information technology of the Tax sector in the country. Nghe An Customs Department also conducts electronic customs tax declaration, National One-Stop Shop, Department of Finance, State Treasury applies Tabmis system to connect the entire system...

In recent times, district-level departments, agencies, and communes and towns in many districts have also made efforts to apply information technology in management, operation, and document and document exchange, initially achieving certain results.

Recently, Nghi Loc District People's Committee issued a directive requiring heads of departments, branches, and sectors and Chairmen of People's Committees of communes and towns to deploy the establishment, exploitation and use of electronic documents to promote administrative reform; shorten work processing time, create a transparent, open and modern working environment, and move towards online working methods. The contents that are stipulated to be sent only in electronic documents must absolutely not be sent in paper copies. This is a very good move showing that awareness of the importance of information technology in leadership and management must be synchronized from top to bottom.

The disadvantages

During the implementation process, due to limited infrastructure and human resources, the application of information technology in management and operation in sectors and districts is not uniform, still has problems and is not very effective.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is currently using M-Office software. When documents arrive, after asking for the leader's opinion, the clerk goes online, scans, and sends them to the department heads, who then process them or assign them to their deputies. In addition, the clerk still has to manually enter them into the books as usual. Talking to us, the Head of the Department's Planning Department said: "In my opinion, applying information technology to management is very important. But the problem is that it cannot be authorized; a lot of data is lost and cannot be recovered."

At the district and commune levels, the use, exploitation and exchange of information via electronic documents have not been very effective, not popular and not regular. Up to now, the whole province has 58 electronic information portals/pages, 100% of provincial professional agencies and People's Committees of districts, cities and towns have active electronic information portals but have not met the people's requirements. Many district information portals have not updated the district's directive documents such as Tan Ky, Thanh Chuong, Nghia Dan...; some districts have posted old information, not updated with new news from 2014. Many agencies, although their network infrastructure has been upgraded, because the heads and deputies do not often use information technology, are afraid of learning and applying online, meetings and work assignments are still mainly done in person. That is the reason why many units are in a state of meeting inflation.

The first reason can be said to be the political determination, leadership responsibility, and direction of administrative reform of the Party Committees of some sectors and localities; the implementation organization of the heads of some agencies and units is not drastic. Therefore, the consultation on the development and implementation of plans; the urging, inspection, preliminary and final reviews, emulation - rewards, evaluation, classification, and periodic quarterly and annual reports on administrative reform in many agencies and units are still cursory, superficial, and formalistic.

In order to continue promoting the application of IT and the application of the quality management system according to TCVN ISO 9001:2008 standards in the operations of State administrative agencies according to Decision No. 19/2014 of the Prime Minister, in addition to the advice and direction of all levels and sectors, the attention and participation of the heads of agencies and units is needed.

Chau Lan