USDA Service Centers: Multibillion Dollar Effort to Modernize Processes and Technology Faces Significant Risks

摘要

In early 1992, USDA began studying options for restructuring the department, including the county-based structure consisting of thousands of county offices nationwide delivering farm and rural development programs to customers. At that time, USDA had separate it modernization efforts planned for each of the farm service, conservation, and rural development agencies. In light of the impact of possible restructuring on these plans, the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry urged USDA to postpone purchases of computer technology beyond what was necessary to maintain existing systems until the new structure of the department was defined. USDA agreed, and in April 1993 established a consolidated multiagency program called Info Share. The goal of Info Share was to improve operations and delivery of services to customers by reengineering business processes and developing integrated information systems.