Iowa Communications Network (ICN)

• Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Visualization
• Analytics & Modeling - Predictive Analytics

• Telecommunications

• Business Operation
• Quality Assurance

• Real-Time Location System (RTLS)
• Remote Asset Management

• System Integration
• Training

When Ric Lumbard, Executive Director at ICN, stepped into his position, he realized that a central visual point for data did not exist. As a broadband carrier, ICN needed a visual system to be able to monitor the overall health and performance of the organization. Director Lumbard explained that state agencies tend to focus on monitoring the legal aspects of operations, but measuring the performance of operations is not always given the same attention. Director Lumbard was looking for a solution to raise the importance of performance awareness by providing visual cues and monitoring that allowed the staff to easily and quickly see a dashboard with important performance indicators. Another focus point for ICN was that the data to be analyzed was scattered across numerous sources–from a variety of databases to spreadsheets–in multiple servers and applications. The operations perspective needed a way to combine that data, maintain a single repository of truth, and visually analyze the data without sifting through dozens of pages of spreadsheets and columns.

The Iowa Communications Network (ICN) is the United State’s premier state government broadband carrier network, providing Iowa broadband solutions for the education, government, public safety, and healthcare sectors. ICN provides broadband and telecommunication services to: K-12 schools, higher education, hospitals and clinics, state and federal government, National Guard armories, and libraries. ICN is the only state-owned broadband carrier, with over 8,660 miles of owned and leased fiber within the State of Iowa. The Network began with a vision to connect and power education, and is now an essential broadband carrier for the State of Iowa.

After looking at several business intelligence solutions, Director Lumbard and his team felt that, 'Sisense was the only business intelligence solution that could produce the dashboards with the exact measurements and visualizations we wanted–and was able to do so in a quick and easy demo.' ICN required very specific data visualizations, such as custom speedometers with high, low, and medium metrics. Sisense was able to deliver that immediately, and also provided a fast implementation. 'You can’t manage what you can’t see. Before Sisense, there were optics that were not available,' explained Director Lumbard. Now, all bureau chiefs have access to the Sisense dashboards, which are interactive allowing users to touch a gauge and drill down into sub data. 'Sisense visually shows us how much broadband has increased, in what sector, what trends are happening, and if we are trending in the right direction,' Director Lumbard explained, adding that Sisense offers an array of data visualizations that are easily customizable.

• ICN now uses Sisense to feed an operation center called the BRIC, (Broadband Information Center) so all bureaus can view the status visually across the network using monitors.
• Director Lumbard’s next step with Sisense will be to implement the display on monitors in public areas as well, so the entire staff can very quickly and easily assess overall performance at glance.
• Though ICN is using Sisense mostly for the eyes of the executive team, their end goal will be to open Sisense dashboards up to the entire agency so they can access, 'a simple, visual report card that will help inspire and motivate performance and effectiveness across all our bureaus,' Director Lumbard explained.

• ICN now uses Sisense to feed an operation center called the BRIC, (Broadband Information Center) so all bureaus can view the status visually across the network using monitors.
• The entire staff will be able to see how much broadband growth is going on in the state and in different sectors.
• ICN is able to provide up-to-date and visually intuitive reports and presentations to elected officials, commission members, and key stakeholders.