2020’s global COVID-19 pandemic was the undeniable wakeup call to many states that their technology infrastructure and systems could no longer continue with patchwork solutions and expect to adequately serve constituents. Many unemployment insurance systems in particular buckled under the pressure of an unprecedented claims volume—and unprecedented fraud.
The State of Vermont took proactive measures for modernization and also sought outside expertise through Resultant to identify opportunities for improvement in UI fraud detection and prevention, beginning with the development of a strategic vision.
Why states need a strategic vision
For so many states, pieced-together systems that slow processing and offer subpar fraud detection show the ramifications of not having a strategy mapped out before implementing technology solutions. Vermont knew their existing legacy system wasn’t up to the task of improving UI fraud detection rates. Back when massive mainframes and COBOL were standard, scalability wasn’t even in the computing vocabulary.
Vermont and other states have realized this truth: There will always be an unknown. You can’t prepare for everything, so what can you do? Build a foundation that is as robust and scalable as possible.
While no one can predict the future, an infrastructure that can be expanded and adapted will give states’ technology the longest life and best ROI. Exactly what that infrastructure should look like, what systems it needs to be able to accommodate, and what capabilities it should have starts with a thorough assessment of current technology. Connecting the dots between where a state is now and where it wants to go dictates a strategic vision, and that’s the plan Vermont embarked upon.
How the strategy development process is valuable
The evolution of public service in the Information Age demands cross-agency collaboration. For agencies and departments to be willing to share information, doing so needs to be easy and show clear benefits. Developing a strategic roadmap for the State of Vermont involved many in-depth conversations with numerous stakeholders, including members of these Vermont organizations:
- Legal Aid
- General Assembly
- Businesses for Social Responsibility
- Chamber of Commerce
- Office of Racial Equality
Bringing multiple stakeholders into conversations about processes, people, and technology paves the way for collaboration, an essential element to reaching UI solutions that work. Cross-agency collaboration breaks down information silos, and participation ensures all parties are invested in the process and the outcomes.
Our work with Vermont’s Department of Labor in process discovery, process maturity and alignment, and action recommendations along the strategic roadmap positions the agency for long-term success.
Click here to read more about Vermont’s outcomes and how their maturity matrix was developed.
