NIH Information Technology Consolidation Project

Responding to DHHS Secretary Tommy Thompson’s "One Department" vision, NIH accomplished a major consolidation of its information technology (IT) services.

What Was Consolidated?

• All NIH e-mail users now have primary mailboxes on the CIT-managed Central Email Service.


• CIT now operates a single help desk for the NIH, which receives and responds to or distributes all IT trouble tickets.


• Wireless networking at the NIH is managed by CIT and is bound by a single security policy.


• Consistent IT perimeter security policies and mutual failover practices have been implemented for the NIH's two Internet connections.

Why Did We Consolidate the Systems?

• HHS mandated these changes.


• Centrally managed e-mail, help desk, and wireless networking will create economies of scale.


• All ICs will enjoy a consistent, high level of service.


• Centrally managed infrastructure services will be more easily monitored for quality than disparate systems.


• Best practices show that IT security must be managed centrally to be effective.

What’s Next in NIH IT Consolidation?

The NIH Administrative Restructuring Plan (which has been distributed to the NIH Executive Officers) outlines plans for restructuring processes in several management areas and network consolidation.