oftware Summit Helps Humanize Hi-Tech

DURANT, Okla. – Intertribal Software Consultants’ 5th annual Data Summit saw a record turnout earlier this month as more and more midwestern Indian nations discover the value of electronic records management in running their governments.

The Summit theme of   ”Power Through Centralization” resonated with information technology  experts from the Choctaw, Creek, Seminole, Cherokee, Cheyenne and Arapaho nations, to name a very few of the organizations that attended the three days of classes at Choctaw Casino and Resort in Durant OK.

“Tribal leaders are increasingly realizing that they can only provide the services citizens depend on by computerizing operations whenever possible,” said Intertribal marketing manager Dee Ann Moore. That’s what the Summit is all about: Centralizing data systems to concentrate power and access for the benefit of the government and its citizens.”

Intertribal offers customers different levels of software with its focus being data storage, access, and automation solutions specifically for Indian nations. Intertribal is a 2014 recipient of the Laserfiche Winner’s Circle VAR award, placing them among the top resellers of the world’s leading government records management software systems, Moore says

Many of the courses at the Summit focused on applying Laserfiche’s suite of software features to the wide range of public services tribal governments must offer. In addition, the Summit offered instructions on Intertribal’s own software packages specifically designed for Native American governments. Along with the course instructions, the Summit allows attendees to share experiences and successes using electronic records management with their peers in other tribes, says Moore.

“The Summit has become a means for learning skills that become huge time-savers when put into practice back home,” she says. “But, it is also a lot of fun. You learn from others in a social setting. It is the perfect, low-pressure environment for discovering how immensely powerful this technology can be for any paper-heavy enterprise, not just governments.”

The Summit is also an awful lot of work, Moore adds. Organizing for the event is a year-long affair without any immediate guarantee of return on that investment. At the same time truly embracing electronic records management takes commitment by the customer to what is often a new, and possibly intimidating technology. By having folks sign up for three days of classes, it allows Intertribal the time to get that message across in a way no brochure or product demonstration can, Moore says.

Chief Gary Batton of the Choctaw Nation of OK,  the 47th Chief of the third largest Indian Tribe in the United States was keynote speaker for the first day of the Summit.  Chief Batton has seen a lot of changes from the beginning of his employ with the Choctaw nation in 1987.  As a long-term user of Laserfiche, his opening speech “Technology and its Benefits to the Choctaw Nation” was full of the very sorts of experiences that instill confidence in newer users, Moore says.

Laserfiche pre-sales engineer Nathan Semper was available to instruct several levels of classes on implementing and getting the most from the software . The classes were structured to help veterans hone their skills and teach new users how to navigate the software. After all, switching from the oral traditional of passing information through the generations versus scanning documents for cyber retrieval is introducing an entirely new means of operating to the oldest governments in the country.

Multi-talented  entrepreneur, recording artist, author and public speaker Gary “Litefoot” Davis, known for his role in “House of Cards” as the character Michael Frost  was brought in to speak about his business Native Edge. Native Edge was developed to be an educational tool. It is an online business training, networking, employment and development ecosystem built to give Indian Country the “Edge” in all aspects of business. It provides entrepreneurs and business owners tools to grow their businesses for Native American empowerment.   Davis is President and CEO of the National Center For American Indian Enterprise Development.

Holding the conference at the Choctaw Casino and Resort, which has a Triple A, four-star rating, was a bonus for the attendees. There was plenty of down time to enjoy all that that the resort has to offer, which certainly resonated with those in attendance, according to Moore.

“At Intertribal we say it is ‘It’s All About The People’, and this conference is one way of showing our customers we take our slogan seriously,” she says. “It may be three days of computers and software, but in the end it’s the people using this technology that we are trying to help and the Summit is proving to be a very educational experience, but it’s also fun.”

– Laura Halkenhauser is technical writer for NBN Communications a writing and research services company.