Information Technology (Department 017)
Ward Thorne, IT Director (contracted)
Description and Mission
The Information Technology Department provides secure, reliable, and integrated technology solutions in alignment with the goals of the county offices in provision of services to public. IT strives to increase efficiencies countywide through increased security, integrity, and availability of data and resources. This department collaberates with county leadership and employees to understand the information technology needs of elected officials, staff, and public. IT provides leadership and planning for the effective and strategic use of emerging technologies and demonstrates technical and operational excellence through a commitment to professionalism and continous improvement.
Accomplishments, Goals, and Objectives
Accomplishments 2022
The department continued focus on supporting our internal customers throughout Elbert County Government which included regular meetings with each department. Fielding of AT&T Firstnet cellular service to the Sheriff's Office now ensures our first responders have priority network access for emergencies. Other department uses of Firstnet was examined. Increased efforts regarding system security were fielded including a roll out of rollout of a Security Operations Center (SOC) backed by Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) enabled on all at-risk applications. Continuous efforts were made to reduce unneeded or redundant expenses.
Goals and Objectives 2023
With the recent increase in cyber attacks against our state and local governments, it is clear that the department's imperative is staying ahead of the security curve. We will continue to research into the technologies that increase our security footprint and help us to prevent the downtime and costs associated with a security breach.
We will also continue to meet regularly with our key decision makers to make sure we have the right applications and technology to allow them to make the decisions they need to make daily. We will work to make sure that not only is the technology secure but also work with our lifecycle reporting to ensure that we do not become too antiquated with our equipment.
The mobile strategy for all county employees will be key in 2023 to determine the right provider of cellular technology to be aligned with, and to make sure we have all the tools to help our more mobile users.
As always, our number one goal is to ensure that all our employees are as efficient, effective, and secure as they can be on a daily basis to protect the interests of the county and the citizens that live in the county.