https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Commentaries


Commentary

Maximizing public sector ROI on technology investment

Maximizing public sector ROI on technology investment

Promapp CEO Ivan Seselj explains how reviewing business processes is central to maximizing ROI on technology investment.
  • Written by contributor
  • 1st November 2017

By Ivan Seselj

Many government officials still cling to the belief that ROI in the public sector is impossible to demonstrate. How can you calculate ROI when there are no revenues or profits?

Unfortunately, refusal to believe in the power of public sector ROI prevents many agencies from developing a comprehensive approach to evaluating human resources, training, and performance improvement initiatives. Studies of public sector ROI show significant cost savings from improvements in productivity, quality, time reduction, and direct cost reductions resulting from investment in technology.

There are many things agencies can do to impact the ROI on technology investment. One of these is effectively leveraging process management.

Take a look at two recent technology implementations in the public sector, as an example. In the first, the agency was attempting to consolidate two internal business units. While the agency was deploying an ERP system to integrate both units’ core business processes, neither unit had completely documented its current business processes prior to implementation.

As you might expect, issues with the implementation arose almost immediately. Because neither the ERP vendor nor the systems integrator understood the agency’s business processes, implementation slowed to a crawl. This resulted in problems with segregation of duties (SoD) in the processes, which in turn undermined the effectiveness of the new system. It also had a negative impact on staff confidence in the new technology.

Compare that to a second agency, which began its technology implementation by documenting all current business processes. The agency took the added step of creating a series of detailed use cases to clarify system requirements and speed up the design phases. Only after completing these steps did the agency consider possible technology options. 

By taking these initial steps, the second agency was in a significantly better position to consider possible tech options, structure testing in order to get the desired coverage, and validate its thinking by getting input from all stakeholders. This approach also helped the agency deal with any issues presented by the two business units, while creating staff buy-in.

But why focus on business processes? By understanding current processes, what they are designed to accomplish, and why they were established in the first place, agencies will be in a significantly better position to successfully manage change and optimize ROI.

I would suggest there are four key factors which government agencies should consider in order to maximize ROI on their technology investment:

  1. Begin by capturing and understanding all your current processes. Organizations don’t always appreciate the complexity of their processes until they see them mapped. It is particularly important to investigate and understand the reasons behind any nuances that exist within the processes.
     
  2. Take ownership of those processes. Although the agency might require some external assistance, this should not be delegated to an outside vendor who will not know the agency the way you do.
     
  3. Involve all areas of the operation which might be impacted. In change management, it’s important to get everyone affected by the changes on the same page to overcome any resistance and preempt staff complaints. Let employees know not only what changes are being made, but why.
     
  4. Plan and analyze first. That way it’s easier to make the right decisions about what the solutions should be, easier to design those solutions, easier to test those solutions, and easier to implement – and, if necessary, change – those solutions.    

To maximize ROI and drive successful change, business processes represent the logical starting point. Beginning with processes will positively impact employees and result in savings generated through improved work output, time savings, and direct cost reductions. That’s good news for any business.

 

Ivan Seselj is CEO of Promapp Solutions, a provider of cloud-based business process management (BPM) software for creating and managing business processes online. You can contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @Ivanseselj.

 

_____________

To get connected and stay up-to-date with similar content from American City & County:
Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter
Watch us on YouTube

Tags: Smart Cities & Technology Commentaries Commentary

Most Recent


  • Amid tech labor shortage, outsourcing digital services could provide relief
    The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated tech and digitization globally, forever changing the way local governments conduct daily business, along with the expectations of constituents. Over the last two years, smart city plans have increased in popularity; services like tax bill payments and licensing have mostly shifted into the digital realm; and town offices evolved into comprehensive […]
  • procurement IT
    The beauty of the beast: Why the pandemic & cybersecurity might actually improve procurement and IT collaboration
    For well over decade, IT managers have listed cybersecurity as their number one concern. Both the CompTIA Public Technology Institute (PTI) and the National Association of State Information Officers (NASCIO) have been tracking top trends in IT management, policy, governance and operational issues as they relate to state and local government. Only recently has “procurement” […]
  • public health
    Building the public health workforce of tomorrow
    Since the first case of COVID-19 hit the United States, public health units across the country have been working non-stop to contain this deadly disease. In the two years since the first lockdowns, we’ve all seen these professionals work diligently to help educate the public about the risks, give tips on how to prevent getting […]
  • Reno launches first-ever municipal blockchain app to track public transactions
    Much has been said in the last week about the ongoing meltdown of cryptocurrency, driven by an uncertain economic outlook and rapidly increasing inflation. Over the last seven months, Bitcoin, for example, has dropped to $21,000 from its $64,000 high. But while crypto markets might be in retreat at least for the moment, the underlying technology […]

Related Content

  • North Texas alliance partners with Marketplace.city on smart government solutions
  • Harris County deploys next-generation security in 150 public buildings
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery
  • Today’s infrastructure needs greater than roads and bridges - It’s time to face our digital connectiveness

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

Report: Local and state governments are facing a retention crisis; the worst could be yet to come dlvr.it/SSnmS7

24th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Amid an unprecedented increase in federal spending, cities and counties stand to benefit from partnerships dlvr.it/SSkGBn

23rd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Governments using technology to harness data and improve decision-making dlvr.it/SSk3H0

23rd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Infrastructure highlighted by city leaders as top priority in analysis of 60 mayoral addresses dlvr.it/SSgBck

22nd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Oklahoma City puts the focus on employees when implementing changes in office technology dlvr.it/SSfyns

22nd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

We want to hear from you! Please take this brief survey and let us know how your organization is managing your budg… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

22nd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Buying smart solutions: Technology is now part of (almost) every government purchase dlvr.it/SSbj3Z

21st June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Amid tech labor shortage, outsourcing digital services could provide relief dlvr.it/SSbj23

21st June 2022

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X