Kim McDonough, GIS Coordinator, Information Technology Division, of Tennessee DOT, and a long-time active member of the GIS community in the state, wrote a great article for ESRI ArcNews about Managing GIS within the infrastructure of the IT/IS department. Kim explains the importance of GIS working within the confines of the IT organization.

The computers and systems we use for GIS are exactly the same as those for all other applications in the agency and across the state. We store all our geospatial elements in the exact same database environment as all our inventory features. We have too many similarities to standard information technology to be considered outside of that management scope now. The growth has occurred for myself and other GIS professionals in learning and implementing the operational standards of a large IT department. We are held to a higher standard now in developing and managing our program. Every project must be introduced and adopted into the Information Systems Plan (ISP) before work can begin. Most of these projects will also require a rigorous cost-benefit analysis (also known as return on investment).

I’ve worked in IT for most of my career too and Kim’s comments ring true as GIS is becoming more mainstream, even in smaller jurisdictions. Even if you don’t have an official IT department or existing operational standards for your GIS to reside in, it still makes sense to take a look at the bigger IT picture as an organization moves forward tackling the ever changing world of technology. You will begin to see more buy in from other internal organizations, less duplication of effort and data, and significant cost savings.

Read the article HERE.