Bricklayer, Sr. jobs in Eau Claire, WI

Position: Sr. Subject Matter Expert

Duration: 1 year

Location: Minnesota (Remote)

Client: State of Minnesota

JOB DESCRIPTION

Description of Project

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) and, eventually, the new Department of Children, Youth, and Families; partnering with the Minnesota Department of Information Technology Services (MNIT), collectively the State, is working on information technology modernization for programs impacting children and families.

The work is expected to be done remotely, although there may be a possibility of on-site meetings.

The $20 million for MODERNIZING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FOR PROGRAMS IMPACTING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Legislation was passed into law in the 2023 session that requires plan development, cross-agency engagement, and coordination and alignment with other systems modernization activities that affect the same state agencies and programs.

The plan must include strategies to:

• Minimize the time and effort needed for families to apply for, enroll in, and maintain enrollment in programs;
• Minimize the time and effort needed for providers to administer programs;
• Improve coordination among programs for families;
• Assess the impact of childhood programs on children's outcomes, including school readiness and educational outcomes; and
• Monitor and collect nonbiometric attendance data at child care centers licensed under Minnesota Rules, chapter 9503, through a combination of state-provided technology and integration with private child care management systems [The State has completed the work and engagement on identifying a path forward to meet this requirement]

Goals

Make decisions based on good data, trusted experts, and community insights

• Streamline decision-making process
• Instill project management
• Improve data production, collection, and sharing
• Conduct meaningful data analysis and communicate data in a usable and understandable way
• Preserve as much of the money allocated as possible for impact

Modernize state government

• Use creative collaborations to rethink how government can address the needs of Minnesotans
• Automate and digitize processes and implement IT solutions that enhance capacity to serve Minnesotans
• Explore shared services
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement
• Build on and align with existing modernization efforts

Support Minnesota children, families, and those who serve them

• Center equity and use equity analysis on projects and decisions with a focus on Minnesotans with most significant barriers to accessing technology, systems and what they need.
• Reduce burden to families in accessing services
• Ensure those working with families are well supported in ensuring families have access to what they need
• Provide easy-to-navigate, person centered supports that are linguistically and culturally responsive, including plain language

Goal: Engage partners in a collaborative and holistic manner

• Gather partner input through outreach, engagement, and user experience design best practices
• Develop standard process to gather partner feedback
• Share knowledge and increase collaboration across state agencies and with local community

Goal: Direct and model cross-agency collaboration

• Ensure person-centered, whole family delivery of services across program areas
• Foster cross-agency problem solving and collaboration

Phase 1 Tasks and Deliverables

The high-level deliverables for this engagement include evaluation of existing data and IT systems/tools; engagement with stakeholders to identify gaps and opportunities for IT solutions; and a roadmap for implementation from what is heard from Administration leaders and stakeholders.

Deliverable #1: Assessment

a. Work closely with DCYF, DHS, MNIT, Children's Cabinet, and other agencies as identified by the Children's Cabinet, as well as our partners to identify scope and focus areas and then understand goals, challenges, and requirements.

b. Engage related external stakeholders by conducting interviews, workshops, and assessments to gather relevant information in an iterative process before and after narrowing the scope. The State envisions this being multiple interviews and workshops which engage groups such as child care providers, advocates, counties, Tribes, school districts and charters, as well as other users of agencies' systems. Some stakeholder engagement may need to occur outside of the standard business day to reach impacted populations.

c. Evaluate existing systems, processes, and technologies to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement. Excluding Minnesota's Social Services Information System (SSIS).

d. Using information gathered in a., b., and c., partner with agency leadership to narrow scope to two or three focus areas to identify solutions.

e. Market research of potential solutions and/or technologies, including identifying options in use in other states/government entities.

Deliverable #2: Strategic Plan with Implementation Roadmap

a. Recommend appropriate technologies, tools, and platforms based on needs and industry best practices. Recommend prioritization of recommendations to deliver solutions iteratively to quickly provide value and responsiveness to top priorities emerged in engagement including by using the available resources in this fund. Including findings from separate SSIS assessment.

b. Based on the information gathered during the assessment deliverable, provide guidance a decision-making process to use the funds made available through the legislation.

c. Present the proposed roadmap to clients, stakeholders, and project teams. Note: presentations need to be done in a shareable format and meeting legislative reporting requirements.

d. Consider budget constraints and provide cost-effective recommendations.

Phase 2 Possible Tasks and Deliverables

Optional Phase 2 may be added. The vendor providing the assessment and roadmap would not be eligible to implement the roadmap. Phase 2 may include such tasks as:

Design the overall architecture of the proposed solutions and recommendations in the roadmap, considering factors such as scalability, security, performance, and integration with existing systems and modernization efforts.

b. Working closely with development teams to ensure the solution is implemented according to the design specifications.

c. Providing guidance and clarification during the development process.

d. Creating comprehensive documentation for the roadmap, including architecture diagrams, data models, and technical specifications.

e. Ensuring documentation is clear and accessible for both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

f. Collaborating with project managers to ensure the roadmap and corresponding solution design aligns with project timelines and objectives.

g. Assisting with Organizational Change Management (OCM), data architecture and other ancillary work to support implementation activities.

h. Providing input into project planning and resource allocation.

Desired Qualifications

The State is seeking a vendor proposing a SME who has:

• Extensive experience in providing independent assessments
• Proven history of creating roadmaps for complex organizations
• Experience integration and updating legacy systems
• Extensive access to industry related research and ability to conduct independent research
• Demonstrated knowledge of and proven success in the human services space