Finding the (Often Hidden) Benefits of FI$Cal
Nearly all designated State departments have been using FI$Cal for at least a year now. And with such a complex system, it’s been challenging indeed. Many of us at Highlands are continuously evaluating how to help our clients take full advantage of FI$Cal and gain…
Read MoreA Client-Focused Project Management Tool
Coordinating projects can be a challenge, even for seasoned professionals. During an engagement, you have competing deadlines, shifting priorities, client demands to meet, and a project team to coordinate. So how do you keep track of all that? You find a tool that works for…
Read MoreSelection to Success in Three Months
Is it conceivable to automate a 100% paper-based process in less than three months, even for a complex State environmental program? The answer is yes! This week, one of our clients at the State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) delivered a presentation that recounted…
Read MoreConsultant Speak vs. the Nitty Gritty
For nearly 30 years, I’ve enjoyed working in the government technology industry, focused on serving the State of California. Along the way, I’ve met and worked with hundreds of amazing consultants with business and technical expertise. In recent years, I’ve become sensitive to what our…
Read MoreThe Six Core Concepts of Business Analysis
In my current role as an acquisition consultant, I am helping California agencies plan and procure new information technology solutions. Starting with a structured approach to business analysis has set the stage for success. The Business Analysis Core Concept Model (BACCM™), developed by the International Institute…
Read MoreGetting from A to B
I have always been passionate about automobiles and traveling so it seems fortuitous that a lot of our recent consulting projects in 2015 and 2016 have been on these very topics. On the strategic and business planning front we recently facilitated executives at the California…
Read MoreCongratulations to Our Newly Certified SAFe Agilists!
Highlands is proud to announce that nine of our consultants are now certified in the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe): Nikki Angle, Demetre Haralambakis, Michele Rickey-Pidd, Mike Cappelluti, Eric Norton, Will Cuper, Judy Melson, Amanda Priest, and Jacob Olson. SAFe delivers a strategy for implementing Agile at…
Read MoreCase Study: Owning the Change Determines IT Success
The Highlands Consulting Group is assisting the State of California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD) with implementation of ePlanCheck (ePC), a tool for the electronic submission, review, and approval of architecture and other building plans. ENVISION: We are using our knowledge of…
Read MoreWhat are Mid-Level Requirements – and Why Do We Need Them?
As we help our clients adapt to the State’s new Project Approval Lifecycle, we find we’re being asked to define “mid-level requirements” to support the alternatives analysis that happens early in the procurement process. For those who aren’t familiar with the Project Approval Lifecycle –…
Read MoreIT Procurement 101: The Myth of the 50/50 Procurement Evaluation
A growing trend in public sector information technology (IT) procurement is the 50/50 evaluation: assigning 50% of available points to cost and 50% to the solution. The logic is that weighing cost at 50% forces bidders to reduce their costs and assures the buyer the…
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