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Brookline board says IT committee should refocus on policy after operational gaps surface
Summary
Department heads and the Select Board agreed to reconstitute DITWIG as a policy/advisory group, publish a clearer IT purchasing process, and bring in IT expertise to reconcile a strategic plan with frequent ad-hoc vendor requests.
Department heads and DITWIG members told the Select Board they are receiving frequent, piecemeal vendor recommendations and quotes without a clear purchasing process. That has led to confusion about who pays for replacements and when equipment should be budgeted or procured.
Speakers described an earlier IT strategic plan and an equipment-replacement schedule that some staff say is not being followed; others reported slow vendor follow-through and inconsistent on-site visits. “We need a single point of contact,” a department head said, recommending that Eagle (the town’s IT vendor) be brought back to explain standards and regular visitation expectations.
The board directed staff to share the existing IT strategic plan with department heads and to work to reconstitute DITWIG with a narrowed advisory scope — focusing on an IT purchasing policy and strategic oversight rather than day-to-day troubleshooting. Board members also recommended asking one or two qualified committee members or outside IT experts to independently evaluate current quotes and provide an emergency triage for critical failures.
The board said these steps should help department heads know whether replacements come from individual department budgets or a centralized IT line and reduce unnecessary purchases.
