Technological changes such as the vastly increased power of desktop workstations connected by high-speed fiber-optic networks are dramatically changing not only the way people work, but the very nature of organizations. Just as North Carolina’s well planned highway system provides tremendous benefits to our citizens and has greatly facilitated our economic development, building a shared vision and commitment to an electronic information highway system is now necessary to ensure that the state appropriately benefits from advanced information systems technology. A coordinated and cooperative approach to a statewide communications infrastructure will enable us, as a state, to accomplish this with less expense, as well as improve the services of state and local government.

North Carolina has been recognized as one of the leaders in the deployment of advanced, cost- effective information technology services. This has been accomplished by increased sharing of technology resources among agencies. The strategic direction for statewide information connectivity presented in this document builds upon the strengths of the state’s existing computing technology working in conjunction with advanced communications resources. It focuses on defining the strategies that will address both the benefits and the challenges as the state moves more and more to conducting its business electronically.

Senior executives representing the major user communities of the state’s network services participated with the Office of the State Controller to jointly define the interconnectivity needs of the state, and the appropriate strategies for addressing those needs. We gratefully acknowledge their contribution to this strategic planning process. This proposed Statewide Communications Interconnectivity Strategy can be used by the 1996 General Assembly as a guide in funding and deploying communications technologies. This document is also intended to assist the Information Resource Management Commission in its oversight role managing information technology.

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