ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION COMMITTEE REPORT
(as presented to the National Executive Board on July 14, 1997)


For NARFENetters: H.R. 2003, the Barton-Minge Bill, which would have set entitlement caps and provide for a resumption of sequestration procedures, was soundly defeated (347-81) on the House floor on Wednesday, July 23, 1997. This proposed legislation was the subject of NARFE President Jackson's letter to Congressional Representatives which was sent you 7/18/97 and the TROA (Reserve Officer's Assoc.) report sent you 7/19/97 - Don Geoffrion


Attached is the full text of the report that was presented to the NARFE National Executive Board on July 14, 1997. It is in standard ascii format that should be compatible with most wordprocessors. After presentation to the Board, Regional Field Vice President Al Hippert made the motion "97-07-05 that the conceptual recommendations made by the NARFE-Netter Committee be approved and implemented as and when possible." The motion was seconded and unanimously adopted.

It seems that the NARFE-net is here to stay and NARFE Headquarters will continue to move forward using electronic communications.

(Hurrah! --Russ Boor)


INTRODUCTION:

National President Jackson appointed this Committee in late May, 1997, to peruse the parameters of a NARFE rapid communication system. This Committee was commissioned to make recommendations for the establishment of the necessary hardware, software and operating procedures, both for NARFE Headquarters and for field activities. It must be remembered that the entire communication system and this report are in a continuously evolving environment and rapid evolutionary changes are inevitable, in fact, desirable. We must not place ourselves in a position of a cast-in- concrete mindset.

This Committee's first order of business was to determine the goals for "short-term", "mid-term" and "long-term" implementation. "Short-term" being those things that can and should be implemented now prior to our moving to a new headquarters building; "mid-term" being those things which could and should be accomplished in conjunction with the move and shortly thereafter; "long-term" being very desirable items which are impractical for immediate implementation but certainly should be considered downstream in the not too distant future, say within five years or the year 2002.

PRESENT STATUS:
The Committee interviewed all ROs, department managers and many staff members to compile a list of just where NARFE stands today. In summary, the results obtained are:

BY YEAR 2002:

Using their expertise and experience, the Committee members closely examined a crystal ball to develop a set of expectations and goals that can be achieved by the year 2002, using currently existing commercially available technology and software. In a short five years NARFE will see:

To implement and accomplish a plan toward the attainment of the above goals and take advantage of the unique opportunity created by NARFE's pending and almost imminent move to a new headquarters, a plan of action must be quickly developed and approved. There is no time left to put off a decision or this unique cost savings opportunity will be lost.

SHORT TERM ACTION ITEMS

MID-TERM ACTION ITEMS:

LONG-RANGE RECOMMENDATIONS:

Additional comments and more detailed information is included in the attachment to this report.

This report is not meant to be neither inclusive nor complete. It is strongly recommended that the combined knowledge, expertise and ingenuity of NARFE management and staff be sought thru their active participation in the planning and execution of any electronic communication plan including the use of e-mail, the intranet and web site.

The expertise of individual members of the committee will continue to be available as needed to provide advice and answer questions. We are as close as your e-mail connection

_______________________________
Elton "Al" Hippert - Chairman
ihip@inreach.com
_______________________________
Russell Boor - Member
rboor@zianet.com
_______________________________
E. Lee Gross - Member
leenarfe@basec.net

ATTACHMENT TO ECC REPORT dated July 14, 1997

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

GENERAL COMMENT

The members of the committee want to thank all the Officers, Department Managers and the staff that so graciously took time out of their busy schedules to share their ideas and concerns with us. It was very obvious that almost everyone at NARFE headquarters is enthusiastic about the pending move into a new building and the prospect of having access to a modern computer controlled communications system that will also tie them with members in the field.

RECOMMENDED PROCEDURES

Headquarters - web site

Headquarters - Intranet

Headquarters - e-mail

Note: E-mail must take its place alongside all other communication methods and be handled in the same manner. If an item is priority - so be it and answer immediately. If routine the answer must of necessity be answered in its proper order along with all other types of communications.

Field - e-mail

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ON MAJOR STEPS REQUIRED PRIOR TO MOVE TO NEW BUILDING


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