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Not All Clouds are Created Equal Tue, 22 May 2012 07:24:59 GMT

By Gail Thomas-Flynn, Microsoft US State & Local Government Vice President

Over the last year, we've seen a number of state and local governments using the cloud to make big impacts within their organizations and for their citizens. It's always rewarding to see all the ways we are able to help the public sector work better and more efficiently, and seeing some of the cas ... [more]

Safer Children through the Cloud Fri, 18 May 2012 09:43:00 GMT

By Rick Zak, Justice & Public Safety Solutions, Microsoft US State & Local Government

A smaller government agency needs the same world-class solution capabilities as a larger agency but often doesn't have the staff, budget, and other resources required to purchase and support one. The cloud can provide a way to break through this barrier by separating a solution from the technology ... [more]

Build a Mobile App for America - announcing MOBILE AMERICA (the people hackathon)! Mon, 14 May 2012 01:03:00 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

Today Microsoft is launching a nationwide mobile application development campaign to bring citizens and developers together to build apps that can solve national or local problems. The initiative, MOBILE AMERICA (the people hackathon), is inspired by America itself-designed as an event for the peo ... [more]

Making Strides in the Private Cloud Fri, 11 May 2012 07:02:28 GMT

By Keith Olinger, Sr. Director, Microsoft, State and Local Government

Recently, we had the chance to discuss with editors at American City & County some of the great examples of how cloud computing is impacting IT in governments across the country. One of those examples was the city of Holden Beach, NC, which showcases the benefits of implementing a private cloud fo ... [more]

Office 365 Adds FISMA to Certification List Mon, 07 May 2012 01:04:00 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

Last week, Office 365 blog shared an important milestone with its readers, announcing that Office 365 had been granted the Authority to Operate under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) by the Broadcasting Board of Governors. The announcement demonstrates the importance of FISM ... [more]

Better Solutions for Spending Analysis Thu, 03 May 2012 06:44:50 GMT

By Andy Pitman, Microsoft eGovernment Solutions Business Development Director.

In 2010, the State of Georgia Department of Administrative Services launched a solution to improve the State's understanding of spending across all departments and elements of the government; I wrote about this during an August 2010 blog entry. Since that time, accessibility to this type of spendi ... [more]

Fly Free in the Cloud for 30 days! Tue, 01 May 2012 12:06:02 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

Over the last year, countless organizations and government agencies have made the switch to Office 365 and realized the benefits of operating in the cloud. But for those who haven't had the opportunity to find out how Office 365 can be the affordable communication and collaboration solution for th ... [more]

Elections-Related Hackathon Opportunity Thu, 26 Apr 2012 02:10:29 GMT

By Andy Pitman, Microsoft eGovernment Solutions Business Development Director

As my Microsoft colleagues Kim Nelson and Stan Freck have written recently in this blog, Microsoft and its partners are active in the elections space, helping to improve campaigns, while also enabling overseas military voters, and providing other elections-related functions to include those based ... [more]

Making the most out of SharePoint and Fusion Core in Public Safety Mon, 23 Apr 2012 05:39:14 GMT

A Guest Post by Mariano Delle Donne, CEO Adventos

We always enjoy posting a variety of perspectives on the blog, especially from those who are leading innovation in the public sector. The following is a guest post by our technology partner, Adventos, on making the most out of SharePoint and Fusion Core. Public Safety agencies have an increased ... [more]

Meet the latest 2012 Election Technologies Thu, 19 Apr 2012 01:05:00 GMT

By Stan Freck, Director, Office of Civic Innovation, Microsoft U.S. Public Sector

If you thought technology in the 2008 presidential race was a big deal, wait until you see what's gearing up for 2012. The social media-fueled grassroots campaigns that helped propel Barack Obama to the White House four years ago galvanized political activists across the spectrum. Since then, te ... [more]

Commonwealth of Virginia Wins Real Impact Solution Award with Dynamics CRM Mon, 16 Apr 2012 05:30:41 GMT

By Rick Zak, Justice & Public Safety Solutions, Microsoft US State & Local Government

Each day, organizations at all levels of government are working hard to streamline their operations and improve their interactions with their citizens. But despite their efforts, they are faced with a number of barriers, like paper processing and outdated solutions. These and other barriers, coupl ... [more]

Join Us for Game-Changing Decisions in Government Thu, 12 Apr 2012 02:44:30 GMT

By Liz Brackett, State & Local Government Marketing

Last week, the Bright Side team told you about a number of great upcoming webinars focused on what SQL Server can do to help customers in the public sector manage data. Mentioned in the blog post was the upcoming SLG Summit, being held on the 26th and 27th of this month. I'm excited to let you kno ... [more]

Join us at the Your Questions Answered Webcast - Managing a Government Private Cloud Mon, 09 Apr 2012 10:14:34 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

One of the great things about the Microsoft State and Local site is that it is filled with free webinars and podcasts aimed at helping our customers serve their constituents better. And this month we're introducing the new "Your Questions Answered" webcast series with a free session on managing a ... [more]

Fire simulation training can help drive safer communities Thu, 05 Apr 2012 04:07:00 GMT

By Rick Zak, Justice & Public Safety Solutions, Microsoft US State & Local Government

Back in February, I wrote a blog post about the importance of public-private collaboration in disaster response planning. Today I'd like to dive a little deeper into citizen service and talk about the new challenges faced by firefighters as they serve the citizens in their communities. Fire serv ... [more]

Save the Dates: SQL Server 2012 Events this April Mon, 02 Apr 2012 11:23:00 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

Back in March, Microsoft announced the availability of SQL Server 2012 to help customers manage "any data, any size, anywhere." The announcement showcased SQL Server's proven capabilities in the public sector and, using the City of Virginia Beach as an example, the announcement also highlighted SQ ... [more]

Governors Look to Microsoft IT Often for Cost Saving Measures Thu, 29 Mar 2012 08:57:00 GMT

By Gail Thomas-Flynn, Microsoft US State & Local Government Vice President

According to a report issued recently by the National Governor's Association (NGA), the nation's governors are increasingly looking to Information Technology (IT) to help address the many challenges facing states. Top IT Actions to Save States Money and Boost Efficiency and the accompanying white ... [more]

State of Georgia Makes Audio and Video Recordings Accessible and Searchable Online Mon, 26 Mar 2012 02:51:36 GMT

By Andy Pitman, Microsoft eGovernment Solutions Business Development Director

Back in October 2010 I wrote a blog entry regarding the State of Georgia Archives pilot project for making legislative session recordings more accessible via search. Since then Microsoft Research has refined its MAVIS (Microsoft Research Audio and Video Indexing System) technology, and it's now co ... [more]

Microsoft Dynamics Releases "The Challenge of Change" Survey Fri, 23 Mar 2012 10:01:00 GMT

By Bright Side Staff

Yesterday, Microsoft Dynamics released its 2012 Financial System Survey entitled "The Challenge of Change. Conducted alongside the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers, and Treasurers (NASACT), the survey looks at the expectations, strategies, and practices used by states implement ... [more]

Minnesota Takes Major Step in Maximizing Productivity and Reducing Costs with Move to Microsoft Office 365 Tue, 20 Mar 2012 08:50:08 GMT

By Gail Thomas-Flynn, Microsoft US State & Local Government Vice President

We've had a lot of success with Office 365 this year, and today I am thrilled to announce yet another organization that will be joining the ranks of other state and local governments increasing productivity and delivering enhanced services to their citizens. As of today, the State of Minnesota has ... [more]

More public sector organizations turning to Microsoft Dynamics to improve citizen experience Mon, 19 Mar 2012 08:49:02 GMT

By Amir Capriles, Senior Director, U.S. Public Sector Dynamics at Microsoft

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, state governments will face a combined $47 billion deficit between projected revenue and costs for the new fiscal year that begins in July 2012. Despite some positive economic signs, budget pressure is also affecting government, education, a ... [more]