Industry Government Company Singapore Prison Service (SPS) operates 14 prisons and drug rehabilitation centers throughout Singapore. It aims to play an instrumental role in the correction and rehabilitation of inmates under its care. Employees 2,300 IT staff 29 Annual IT Budget Confidential

Jason Wong, deputy director at SPS, said: "We are very honored to be associated with Asia's best users of IT. This award is recognition of Singapore Prison Service's efforts to leverage on technology to enhance the security of the prison system as well as to support innovative rehabilitation programs aimed at helping inmates rehabilitate, renew and restart their lives."

Most notable is the Prison Operations and Rehabilitation System (PORTS). A critical component of PORTS, which became operational in June this year, replaces its older Prison Management System (PMS).

PORTS' Web-based interface is more user-friendly and intuitive. For instance, PORTS can be accessed through a Web browser via the SPS Intranet from any workstation connected to the network. The old PMS was not Web-based, and users could only access the system if they had the client software installed and configured properly in their PCs.

SPS also enhanced the compatibility of the PORTS system. It is designed to run on any Windows operating system, as compared to PMS which was a commercial-off-the-shelf product that could only run on Windows 98 and Windows 95.

To ensure each project's success, Singapore Prison Service engages external change management consultants to smoothen the transitional process. Key personnel are selected to be part of the change management team who will have to attend workshops and participate in discussions. This ensures the team is better prepared to deal with potential issues that may arise, and they act as change agents by positively influencing other stakeholders and getting colleagues to use the new system.

Recognizing the importance of gaining the buy-in of senior management and key appointment holders, efforts are made to engage them throughout the different stages of each project. With the top management's support, project teams can then be confident of the system gaining wide adoption across the organization.