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Today, successful government IT relies heavily on staff having the vision to target a solution that not only can answer your immediate needs, but can help overcome additional challenges organization-wide, now and in the future. The City of Fitchburg, WI had the necessary vision, they just needed the right solution that could help overcome its slow, challenging agenda management process – while building a foundation for improvements city-wide. That’s when it turned to OnBase by Hyland.
"Our immediate need was to overcome challenges in our agenda process. We had one clerk creating Council agendas and sharing those items for 20 regular meetings."
Agenda information was sent to the clerk via a mixture of paper and email, creating a disjointed process that caused missed deadlines and missing agenda points.
OnBase created a single location to submit and gather agenda information from every department and standing committee in the city. Staff now submit their agenda information into the solution which then automatically routes it to the clerk. The clerk then packages up the agenda and the system routes it to the right people for approval.
"The clerks now always know where an agenda item is in the approval process, and can even use the system to send reminds so staff don’t forget and cause holdups during review. OnBase removed the need to hunt people down and rush to get agendas done."
The success found in improving agenda management processes provided a springboard for expanding OnBase into the Finance Department. The department started by automating the purchase order approval process.
The department used to keep all POs printed out in one massive document, as well as in a giant PDF that became unwieldy once it hit the six-month mark. Now, OnBase enables staff to create a PO approval eform that automatically gets routed through the review chain. This leads to PO completion in a fraction of the time and grants visibility into the review process. After the process is complete, OnBase provides a single, central location to immediately pull up any POs for reference.
These results bolstered the confidence of the Finance Department, driving them to kick off a project for full AP automation.
The ability to deploy OnBase in targeted locations and grow the solution as opportunities arise has helped Fitchburg continue to develop and fulfill its vision.
"During the selection process, finding a flexible solution was crucial. We needed a solution that could answer the small issues that pop up without having to purchase new, separate systems. OnBase did that and more."
With OnBase, Fitchburg developed a standardized grants approval process for the entire city. Using an eform to submit the request, OnBase routes it all the way through approvals to the Mayor’s office. This keeps submissions standardized and they never get lost in the shuffle.
“During the selection process, finding a flexible solution was crucial. We needed a solution that could answer the small issues that pop up without having to purchase new, separate systems. OnBase did that and more,” said Prough.
OnBase provides Fitchburg with one, central and electronic location to store documents and information. By connecting it all via one system, staff easily pull up information related to the document they are viewing, so decisions are made with the complete picture in mind.
