Success Stories - Agency Information Technology Team (I-Team)
Description: Established by Action Memorandum by AA/G in October 1998 to "provide a non-bureaucratic, team mechanism for exchanging information about information technology program successes and lessons learned throughout USAID." Check us out: http://inside.usaid.gov/ICT/. The I-Team is four years old! The I-Team meets as needed, usually no more than once every three-four weeks. Representatives from any operating unit in USAID/W with an interest in ICT-for-development attend, and the group is remarkable for the diversity of sectoral interests represented. Virtual members from missions are kept informed by e-mail. Presently, 44 members are on the USAID/W list; 50 on the virtual list. The I-Team is housed within the EGAT Bureau, is coordinated by EGAT/EIT/IT, and reports to the AA/EGAT. The I-Team serves as a kind of Chamber of Commerce, promoting the interests of its members. As its "charter" action memorandum states, the I-Team does not receive or program funds; does not have permanent staff; does not coordinate IT generally."
Value Proposition: The I-Team was established because of the need to have a single focal point for IT-for-development as an emerging cross-cutting theme. The Administrator expressed the need for such a technical point to refer to in matters involving information technology applications. In the year 2000, IT-for-development became one of five Agency cross-cutting themes and Agency primary and secondary codes for IT were established, in part an I-Team accomplishment.
Results: The I-Team played a major role in: - Successfully coordinating the Internet for Economic Development Presidential Initiative, guiding its initiation in 21 countries; - Fostering the initiation of similar cross-cutting I-Teams in the E&E Bureau and in several Missions (India, Morocco, Mali, Namibia, for example); - Generating a sufficient Agency constituency to establish IT-for-development as an Agency cross-cutting theme; - Fostering a proactive IT-for-development climate for Regional Bureaus so that ANE, E&E and LAC now have IT-for-development coordinators/champions similar to the Leland Coordinator in AFR; - Bridging units with common interests to foster unified action, such as a proposal for GDA funding of a PDA pilot and the further development and deployment of business software important for securities and banking systems; - Providing a forum for USAID managers on IT-for-development questions/issues from Y2K to Agency webpage clearance policy; - Providing information to its members on innovative technologies and approaches to their use; - Providing information to its members on the activities of participating units; - Establishing both the I-Team and the Agency Information Technology webpages; - Organizing a conference of 300 NGO participants with Stephen Sposato, now of DCHA, on IT-for-development applications; - "Being there" as a relatively well-known Agency reference point on IT-for-development.
Primary Objectives
Share lessons learned, often through presentations by key technical people, inside and outside the Agency
Solve problems of the group or those posed by the Administrator and Missions, such as providing instruction on computer donations or a technical bulletin on Open Source Software
Promote and publicize the activities and successes of group members
Coordinate Agency participation in the Internet for Economic Development Initiative (Presidential initiative of last Administration) and in similar Agency-wide initiatives as they emerge, such as the Digital Freedom Initiative, a Presidential initiative presently under consideration.
What Went Right...
Planning for the CoP
Deliberately chose not to locate in an operational unit. The team was formed with no authority (in a line sense). The team was deliberated constituted by 'powerless'.
No funding or staff other than that contributed by the members
"Sponsored" by a Global Bureau
Launching the CoP
There was a mixed agenda with clearly identifiable things to do / tasks to be accomplished.
There was a variety of tasks from the beginning, More than just knowledge sharing was on the agenda.
Members were highly energized.
Established a web site (with IRM help)
There was an existing known group of core organizers who could reach out to expand the membership. There was an aggressive search for all Bureau representation.
Sustaining the CoP
Allowed the CoP to go fallow with change in administrations.
Occasional meetings and activities occurred when something 'significant' occurred. The CoP was not 'forced".
The Agency recognized that the CoP was there and could be used when called upon for a specific purpose.
Some office functions exist now that did not exist when the CoP was initiated. These functions no longer need to be addressed by the I-Team e.g., Distance Education, GIS
Lessons Learned
The 'non-threatening' foundation on which the community was formed.
