{"id":477722,"date":"2021-11-30T18:30:40","date_gmt":"2021-12-01T02:30:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=arcuser&p=477722"},"modified":"2021-11-30T18:30:40","modified_gmt":"2021-12-01T02:30:40","slug":"proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","status":"publish","type":"arcuser","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","title":{"rendered":"Proactive, Unified Approach to Modernizing GIS"},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10412,171,25012],"tags":[174092,472461,476742],"arcuser_issues":[476532],"class_list":["post-477722","arcuser","type-arcuser","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-arcgis-pro","category-education","category-managers-corner","tag-arcmap","tag-arcuser","tag-training-plan","arcuser_issues-fall-2021"],"acf":{"short_description":"The City of Austin, Texas, developed a comprehensive plan to migrate to ArcGIS Pro.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":477732,"file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"blockquote","content":"What should a large city government do when it learns that mission-critical software used in more than 30 departments by more than 1,000 employees is going to be retired?"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"That was the question facing Austin, Texas, in March 2019 when Esri announced that ArcMap, part of ArcGIS Desktop, would be retired. (The retirement date is currently March 2026.)\r\n\r\nThe eleventh-largest US city, and home to the influential South by Southwest Conference, Austin has a strong reputation for technology innovation and collaboration. The city decided to begin the transition from ArcMap right away.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe general thinking was, \u2018We\u2019re going to have to move to ArcGIS Pro, so why put it off?,\u2019\u201d said Shanon Sims, IT project manager in the Enterprise Geospatial Services division of Austin\u2019s Communications and Technology Management (CTM) department.\r\n\r\nAustin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment. The primary project goal is to migrate all GIS users from ArcMap by March 2023. The project also includes upgrading GIS servers and enterprise geodatabases to ArcGIS Enterprise.\r\n\r\nAustin\u2019s Geospatial Information Management Governing Board and CTM are guiding the effort. Each participating department has an executive sponsor and a GIS single point of contact, or SPOC. Despite the project\u2019s large scale, it does not use a one-size-fits-all approach. Each department has unique needs and oversight on its portion of the migration.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s a flexible plan,\u201d said Sims.\r\n

Planning Gets Under Way<\/h2>\r\nAs an Advantage Program member, Austin has access to Esri Services experts on all aspects of complex GIS implementations\u2014technical and human. When the GIS Modernization Project began, department sponsors completed a series of implementation assessments.\r\n\r\nOne assessment revealed that, due in part to the number of individuals and departments impacted, some GIS users may not immediately embrace migration-related changes. When individuals are ambivalent about\u2014or even resistant to\u2014 changes impacting their daily work, the risks of slower rates of technology adoption and delayed project milestones increase.\r\n\r\nAustin\u2019s proactive approach to migration is intended to reap the business benefits of modern GIS infrastructure more quickly. Aligning technical goals with people-focused goals was a logical step to drive project success. Esri consultant Michael Green was engaged to conduct people-focused change management activities.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe people side of the modernization project is just as important as making sure the technical solutions are solid,\u201d said Green.\r\n\r\nSix city departments participated in phase 1 of the project, which included change management. Green led the department sponsors and stakeholders through a Preparing for Change workshop, in which participants documented the strategic business outcomes that their departments would achieve from the technology project.\r\nThose business outcomes would be translated into key messaging points and embedded into detailed change management and communications plans for each department.\r\n

Putting a People Plan into Action<\/h2>\r\nThe GIS Modernization Project charter states that 100 percent of Austin\u2019s ArcMap users will be provided with a modern GIS solution. Before the team could determine the right GIS solution for each ArcMap user, they had to identify all GIS workflows, applications, and software versions in use citywide.\r\n\r\nThe number of ArcMap users was originally thought to be 1,200, but later, through ArcGIS License Manager data and installation lists, the team found that the actual number was about 1,400. To determine the right solution for each ArcMap user, CTM examined ArcMap license usage data to ascertain the user activity level in each department.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe had to define power users versus light users and all the variations across the spectrum,\u201d said Sims. The team decided that power users (those performing geospatial analysis and advanced workflows) would migrate to ArcGIS Pro, and light users (those primarily using ArcMap for visualization) would switch to ArcGIS Online.\r\n

The Importance of Training<\/h2>\r\nWith a clear migration path for each ArcMap user, it became imperative to provide individuals with the support they would need to be productive with their new GIS solution.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe have an overarching plan to migrate all City of Austin GIS users, but department by department, that looks different,\u201d said Sims. \u201cAs we looked at the initial needs, we realized that training was a huge part of the change management and of the migration effort.\u201d\r\n\r\nIn fact, training is a key component of every people-focused change management plan. Supporting individuals with resources tailored to their needs is an effective way to build trust and confidence that change is achievable.\r\nEsri training consultant Tamara Adamson works with Sims on course recommendations and training plans. EAP credits were allocated for GIS users to attend instructor-led classes, and Esri e-Learning resources are heavily used.\r\n\r\nAdamson is impressed with Austin\u2019s commitment and detailed approach to training. \u201cThe city is ahead of the curve,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019ve gotten very specific in identifying people who need instructor-led training and those who need e-Learning. They\u2019ve been very purposeful about it.\u201d\r\n\r\nAdamson shares training usage reports with Sims and assists with customized learning plans that managers can assign to individuals through Esri Academy (www.esri.com\/training\/) and then monitor their progress. Learning plans can include instructor-led or self-paced resources or both. In addition to classes, videos, web courses, and tutorials, technical documents, like the ArcGIS Terminology Guide, are available.\r\n\r\nAs the migration progresses, SPOCs work directly with individuals to help them identify best-fit course paths based on their ArcMap and ArcGIS experience and the GIS workflows they perform.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe didn\u2019t start off knowing what these paths are and how we could organize the resources this concisely,\u201d Sims said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a work in progress to get to this point,\u201d she continued.\r\n\r\n\u201cWith remote work situations due to COVID-19 restrictions, Esri\u2019s e-Learning and instructor-led online classroom have provided the just-in-time training needed to help everyone effectively and efficiently migrate,\u201d said Sims.\r\n\r\nWhile not mandated, training is strongly encouraged. Sims frequently discusses training resources in project team and governing board meetings, and they are featured prominently in her user communications.\r\n\r\n "},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":477762,"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Staying on Course with Creative Communications<\/h2>\r\nFrom the outset, Green emphasized the importance of communication. Effective change management requires continual attention to building awareness that change is coming and sharing information on project progress and its benefits to the organization and to each impacted individual. For Sims, communication is a top priority.\r\nThe city\u2019s EAP credits enabled her to continue working with Green on a biweekly basis in phase 2.\r\n\r\nCommunication is a frequent topic in their discussions.\r\n\r\n\u201cMichael has been really integral in helping me develop language, key messaging points, and how we approach training,\u201d said Sims.\r\n\r\nShe leverages data to communicate the project\u2019s current state. Sims created a report for each department that shows monthly ArcMap and ArcGIS installation and license usage for its users.\r\n\r\nThe report is color coded, which makes it easy to visualize how ArcGIS use is growing within each department over time or, in some cases, lagging behind expectations. When managers see that an individual is still mostly using ArcMap after receiving ArcGIS migration support, they reach out to that person to discuss training resources and reinforce the benefits of migrating to ArcGIS Pro.\r\n\r\nSims also creates visually engaging presentations, flyers, infographics, and dashboards to communicate with project stakeholders and GIS users. She sends a monthly newsletter to all employees who have ArcGIS on their device. Communication topics include project updates, training resources, and interesting new information products that have been created.\r\n\r\nOne example is the 2021 edition of the Austin Bike Map. Previously, staff used ArcMap to create the map, then exported simple line work to Adobe Illustrator, where the bike routes were stylized and placed on top of the city\u2019s basemap. That workflow sometimes created discrepancies between the map and the GIS database.\r\n\u201cIf new bike routes came online during the styling process, they would be added in Illustrator, but sometimes the updates would be missing in the GIS,\u201d said Alan De Anda, senior geospatial analyst in the Austin Transportation Department\u2019s Data and Technology Services group.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe basemap data could also get stale, which can happen very quickly in a city as rapidly growing as Austin,\u201d De Anda continued. \u201cNow, all our geographic layers are maintained and stylized in ArcGIS Pro, and only exported to Adobe Illustrator to mix with the infographic art.\u201d\r\n\r\nAll communications are designed to reinforce awareness of the migration and answer questions that GIS users may think but not verbalize, such as Why are we doing this? and What\u2019s in it for me?\r\n\r\n\u201cOne aspect that\u2019s really added value to the communication from a change perspective is that Shanon integrated change management activities directly into her project plan,\u201d said Green. \u201cShe\u2019s operating from one plan, not two, which streamlines execution and serves her well.\u201d\r\n

A Sustainable GIS for the Future<\/h2>\r\nThe final group of departments will soon begin their migration. The city is well positioned to meet its self-imposed deadline of March 2023.\r\n\r\nSims, who started her job with CTM just five weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic forced employees to work from home, is pleased with the city\u2019s unified approach to building a sustainable, modern GIS infrastructure. But as important as the technology is, she most values the people side of the project.\r\n\r\n\u201cI had a very small window to meet my team and learn the ins and outs of city government operations. Their support has been tremendous. I could not ask for a better group of people to work with.\u201d\r\n\r\nFor more information on the City of Austin\u2019s GIS modernization initiative, contact Sims at Shanon.Sims@AustinTexas.gov<\/a>."}],"references":null},"yoast_head":"\nMoving to ArcGIS Pro<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Proactive, Unified Approach to Modernizing GIS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Esri\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2021\/11\/austinmodern_banner.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Esri\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n\t \"@graph\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis\",\n\t \"name\": \"Moving to ArcGIS Pro\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website\"\n\t },\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2021-12-01T02:30:40+00:00\",\n\t \"description\": \"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.\",\n\t \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis#breadcrumb\"\n\t },\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis#breadcrumb\",\n\t \"itemListElement\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 1,\n\t \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 2,\n\t \"name\": \"Proactive, Unified Approach to Modernizing GIS\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"Esri\",\n\t \"description\": \"Esri Newsroom\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t \"target\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t },\n\t \"query-input\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t }\n\t }\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/82e5143bcdebadf8fd64d84e503ca468\",\n\t \"name\": \"Monica Pratt\",\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2018\/08\/MonicaMug_agol2.jpg\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2018\/08\/MonicaMug_agol2.jpg\",\n\t \"caption\": \"Monica Pratt\"\n\t },\n\t \"description\": \"Monica Pratt is the founding and current editor of ArcUser magazine, the executive editor of ArcNews magazine, the editor of Esri Globe and head of the Publications team at Esri. She has been writing on technology topics, specializing in GIS, for more than 30 years. Before joining Esri in 1997, she worked for newspapers and in the financial industry.\",\n\t \"sameAs\": [\n\t \"https:\/\/x.com\/ArcUser\"\n\t ],\n\t \"url\": \"\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Moving to ArcGIS Pro","description":"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Proactive, Unified Approach to Modernizing GIS","og_description":"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","og_site_name":"Esri","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2021\/11\/austinmodern_banner.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@Esri","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis","name":"Moving to ArcGIS Pro","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website"},"datePublished":"2021-12-01T02:30:40+00:00","description":"Austin launched its citywide, three-phase GIS Modernization Project to minimize future disruption and leverage new ArcGIS capabilities to create a more collaborative data-sharing environment and move users to ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcuser\/proactive-unified-approach-to-modernizing-gis#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Proactive, Unified Approach to Modernizing GIS"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/","name":"Esri","description":"Esri Newsroom","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/82e5143bcdebadf8fd64d84e503ca468","name":"Monica Pratt","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2018\/08\/MonicaMug_agol2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2018\/08\/MonicaMug_agol2.jpg","caption":"Monica Pratt"},"description":"Monica Pratt is the founding and current editor of ArcUser magazine, the executive editor of ArcNews magazine, the editor of Esri Globe and head of the Publications team at Esri. She has been writing on technology topics, specializing in GIS, for more than 30 years. Before joining Esri in 1997, she worked for newspapers and in the financial industry.","sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/ArcUser"],"url":""}]}},"sort_order":"9","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/arcuser\/477722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/arcuser"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/arcuser"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1031"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/arcuser\/477722\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=477722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=477722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=477722"},{"taxonomy":"arcuser_issues","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/arcuser_issues?post=477722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}