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And the brains behind this "super" team is Raymond Wong, assistant director of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Immigration Department (ImmD).
Currently responsible for formulating and implementing the government agency's overall strategic IT plan, Wong joined Hong Kong's ImmD in 1972.
He was the driving force behind several key IT projects in Hong Kong, including the Identity Card Information System in the 1980's, the Travel Document Information System for the HKSAR passport, the Smart Identity Card Information System, as well as the soon-to-be launched Biometric Passport System.
Wong, who is well-versed in both the British and Chinese law systems, has multiple degrees under his belt, including four law degrees from China and the United Kingdom, two business degrees and one technology degree. He is currently working toward his PhD in Business Administration--through foreign correspondence--from the University of Newcastle in Australia.
In an e-mail interview with ZDNet Asia, Wong discusses the importance of IT for the ImmD to provide quality service for its citizens and describes IT as the bloodline, "flowing across every section, sub-division and division of the department".
Through IT, he adds, the ImmD's staff has been transformed into a team of "supermen and superwomen" who can work faster, more effectively and efficiently to serve the public in the territory.
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What role does IT play in the Immigration Department's overall management strategy?
A: It's like the blood of the department, flowing across every section, sub-division and division. Without IT, it would be hard for our department to survive and provide quality service to the public.
To what extent would you attribute the department's success to IT?
We implemented the Information Systems Strategy (ISS), which comprises 32 projects totaling US$296 million, in a shrewd building-block approach to meet priority business needs and maximize the synergy between those projects.
The ISS is divided into five stages:
- Phase 1: Smart Identity Card System (SMARTICS)
- Phase 2: Control Point System (CPS)
- Phase 3: Automated Passenger and Vehicle Clearance Systems (e-Channel)
- Phase 4: Application and Investigation Easy System (APPLIES), which handles processes such as visa application, extension of stay, birth, death and marriage
- Phase 5: Data Warehousing-Management Information System (DW-MIS)
Through IT, our department has successfully transformed into a highly-effective and efficient organization in delivering our services at a lower cost. I am proud of being involved in these projects and leading an elite team to accomplish the projects.
What typical issues and challenges does the IT department face?
To provide better public services at lower cost, we use IT as an enabler to transform our staff into 'supermen and superwomen', or, to allow them to work faster, more effective and efficient through IT.
We let the IT systems do the 'donkey (labor-intensive) work' and our professional staff handle the more difficult cases.
How do you measure the success of an IT project?
On top of the ability of delivering a system on time and within budget, wide acceptance of the project by our end-users as well as the public is a crucial factor to measure the success of the IT project.
What technology efforts are in the pipeline, and what do you deem is most important?
Several of the key projects in the pipeline include the implementation of the e-passport, APPLIES, the Electronic Records Program, as well as the Data Warehouse.
These projects are of great importance as they comprise all the essential functions in the ImmD, including issuance of e-passport, visa application, registration of birth, death and marriage. All transactions will be processed online after the implementation, and the workflow engine will automate everything. At the backend, every record will be digitized and made available online, resulting in a paperless environment. Most of the applications including biometric passport and visa applications, can be submitted electronically.
The public can access most of the e-services provided by the ImmD round-the-clock, including the booking of appointments, submission of applications and payment of service fees. They can also check the progress of applications and obtain information provided by the department through these electronic initiatives. Additionally, the public can also communicate with the ImmD offices through the electronic service delivery channels.
Furthermore, with the introduction of APPLIES next year, our case officers can handle paperless files under the more effective workflow environment and processing time will be shortened into days.
The full implementation of more e-services to the citizens (G2C), whereby the general public can apply through self-service, will also save a lot of our counter staff's time and effort. The implementation of e-Brain, a form of artificial intelligence, will also help us deal with more straightforward cases.
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