Management of the territory

As today collecting and information analysis in regions is performed

Let's consider a typical situation. In separate department of regional governing body there is a data collection, necessary for ensuring own activity. On the basis of these data information and analytical documents and drafts of solutions are prepared. When for preparation of the draft decision it is necessary to collect data from several departments, the situation becomes complicated. That data collection is not approved between departments most often it turns out that:

• data are collected in different formats;
• frequency of collecting (updating) of data differs;
• data are duplicated;
• data contradict each other.

As a result, the data collected in several departments cannot be integrated without loss of reliability, or because of inconsistency of primary data the objectivity of the integrated data raises doubts.

Thus, when the data collected in departments come down at the level of department, they only partially reflect a real situation. At consolidation of inexact data from several departments the error collects. And upon transition to the level of management when inexact data of several territories are used, the error increases even more. For this reason with a modern exponential growth of information volumes and speed of work heads have no opportunity to see a real picture of the events in the territory accountable to them. The level of management is higher, the farther it from the place of collecting of primary data, the is less at the head of valid information for decision making.

Process of consolidation of information stored in different formats or attempts to urgently collect missing data require additional resources (time or human). As a result we receive the low speed and doubtful quality of training of information for decision making. And, similar to accumulation of an error at data of data, the speed and efficiency of preparation of the consolidated data decrease with growth of level of management, i.e. in process of removal from a point of collecting of primary data.

Thus, heads of regions do not obtain complete information on a status of the territory or receive it with a delay and they should make decisions, being based on the truncated, distorted and separate data. And it cannot but negatively affect quality of management of the territory.

It is important to notice that the described situation arises irrespective of, information systems in departments are implemented or not. Because often even in the next departments information systems incompatible among themselves which integration initially was not provided, not to mention information systems in different departments are used. Therefore there are problems with preparation of information, and, as a result, the quality of management decreases.

How to overcome the current restrictions of monitoring of data

Thus, in terms of information and analytical approach it is necessary for improvement of quality of management of territories:

• Provide heads of all levels with valid (authentic) information for decision making.
• Increase the speed of preparation of documents for decision making.
• Optimize functions of work with information.

Experts NEOLANT developed the concept of creation of the information management system by territories for the solution of these tasks. Use of the given concept during creation of an information system gives the chance of executive power to organize information and analytical activity so that the heads who are responsible for management of territories at all levels saw a real picture of a status of the managed territories and had an opportunity to increase quality of management and efficiency of decision making.

Within the concept at informatization of process of management of territories experts NEOLANT consider obligatory the following sequence of actions:

• Build information and analytical process at all levels of management of the territory.
• Regulate the performed functions.
• Define the unified requirements to the information system providing information and analytical activity.
• Develop an information system based on the formulated unified requirements to a system.

Building of information and analytical process

Before starting development of an information system, it is necessary to put in order information and analytical processes at all levels of the power: in settlements, municipalities, areas, regional administrations. For this purpose, first of all, it is necessary to systematize the performed functions.

Information and analytical process consists of an information stream and functions of work with it.

Functions of work with information are actually those functions which perform state bodies, namely:

• data collection;
• accounting of data;
• monitoring and data storage;
• analytical processing of data retrieveds;
• preparation of information and analytical documents based on results of analytical data processing;
• formation of projects of management decisions based on information and analytical documents.

Each function is the operation performed by certain contractors and in the specified terms or with frequency, with the set initial data, having result and the receiver of result.

For the organization of an information process it is necessary to define the complete list of the executed functions. Perhaps, the problem of drawing up the list of the executed functions was already solved at the level of department at implementation of a local information system, but for effective management of territories it is necessary to organize the end-to-end, i.e. integrating departments, settlements, municipalities, areas, information and analytical process at all levels of management. Usually data are collected at the bottom level of management, further depending on the performed functions get access from higher levels to them and somehow process. The result of this processing is transferred to the following level at which, for example, data are consolidated with data from other departments and are used for preparation of the draft decision. Thus, functions which are performed at each level depend on results of the performed functions at lower or next levels. Therefore for improvement of quality of management information and analytical process should be constructed entirely, on all levels of management that information proceeded from below up in the form of data and from top to down in the form of requests without gaps, zastoyev and deadlocks.

For building of end-to-end information and analytical process at all levels of management experts offer NEOLANT:

• Systematize the functions performed at all levels.
• Describe information and analytical process from the purposes to functions.
• Optimize process, relying on results of accomplishment of points 1 and 2.

Systematization of functions

For systematization of functions first of all it is necessary to create the list of all functions which are performed by departments, bodies of regional executive power, municipalities:

• what data and who collects;
• as well as who considers data;
• as well as who performs monitoring of data and their storage;
• what analytical processing of data retrieveds and by whom it is made;
• what and whom information and analytical documents based on results of analytical data processing prepare;
• as well as whom projects of management decisions based on information and analytical documents form.

Then the received list of functions needs to be structured and grouped in the approved parameters.

Structurization and grouping of functions will help to organize ordered accounting and to reveal functions:

• which are duplicated and adjoin between different departments;
• for which execution there are not enough data;
• which results have no receivers.

Thus, the description of information and analytical process from the point of view of what functions who performs and who is a consumer of their results will be received.

Process description from the purposes to functions

For creation of an effective information and analytical system it is also necessary to carry out process studying in the opposite direction - from ultimate goals or tasks, in this case, from development of management decisions, to the performed functions. It is necessary to carry out these works to synchronize the list of documents which prepare according to a past practice, and the list of documents which are demanded by the persons making decisions. It is necessary as well for the subsequent automation of process.

The information tasks implemented within an information system should go from the purposes and problems which are solved at management of territories. If it is about preparation of management decision, then any information task should be under construction from this:

• what subject of management decision;
• to which of the persons making decisions, information should be provided.

And in connection therewith are defined:

• structure of information;
• data representation form;
• participants of process of preparation of information;
• functions of participants of process.

Thus, after studying of process process description from the point of view of what subjects of management decisions exist and what functions of work with information need to be executed that these management decisions to prepare will be received from the purposes. Then it is also necessary to execute structurization and grouping of the received functions by the parameters approved at the first stage.

As a result after carrying out two stages two lists of functions will be prepared. In one - all already executed functions and in the second - the functions necessary for accomplishment of assigned tasks. The list of functions, necessary and sufficient for high-quality solving of tasks of management of territories, will be result of consolidation of these lists.

Regulation of the performed functions

After the necessary and sufficient feature set for high-quality execution of activity which is performed by authorities is defined, it is required to carry out an obligatory regulation of the executed functions. Within a regulation the description of functions by establishment of such regulations, rules and characteristics of execution of functions should be carried out, following to which provides required quality of management of territories.

After end of the description and a regulation of the performed functions or actually establishing order in information and analytical process it is possible to pass to problems of automation of this process.

Determination of the unified requirements to an information system

It is correct to begin the solution of a task of automation of any difficult process with determination of requirements to a system which needs to be received. It allows to create the unified information system. Therefore before starting directly development of an information system experts NEOLANT suggest to define the unified requirements to an end-to-end information system of information and analytical ensuring activities for management of territories.

For formation of the unified requirements it is necessary to analyze functions and structure of information which are necessary for execution of these functions. It is important to analyze data on all divisions of executive power: in regional administrations and the relevant departments and committees. In the course of information analysis should be defined:

• thematic blocks in management of development of the territory;
• directions and indicators of monitoring;
• structure of space information;
• methods of analytical processing;
• methods of representation of results of processing.

Based on results of this work it is possible to create the unified requirements to an end-to-end information system of information and analytical ensuring activity.

Development of an information system based on the unified requirements

Further, proceeding from the received requirements, it is possible to develop an information system which will integrate processes of collecting, of processing and the subsequent preparation of information and analytical solutions in complete process and will become the rule of ensuring quality of information and analytical activity of public authorities.

Further the information system developed on the example of one or several regions can be used as a template or a prototype which is imposed on information processes in other regions. For example, if in the region processes are already structured and formalized, then the available prototype is configured according to processes of this region. If in the region processes are insufficiently formalized, then use of a prototype will allow to structure and automate quickly and effectively regional tasks.

Adhering when implementing an information system of the offered concept, state bodies will get access to complete data, optimize management process and as a result will be able to increase quality of management and efficiency of decision making.