The City of Tampa's Automated Agenda Workflow System

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CASE STUDY

• The City of Tampa's Automated Agenda Workflow
  System

2
ISPA, Inc and DocMaestro

• ISPA is a Service Disabled Veteran owned and
  Small Disadvantaged Business headquartered in
  Atlanta, Georgia
• DocMaestro Division is located in Clearwater
• Products include
• AgendaMaestro
• UtilityMaestro
• InfoLinker

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City of Tampa

• Population over 300,000
• Over 4,500 city employees
• Around 34 departments
• Hundreds of employees are involved in the agenda
  process - Requestors
• Over 100 employees involved in the agenda
  approval process - Approvers
• Offices in several buildings throughout city
• Extensive Intranet facilities

4
System Objectives

• Better, faster, cheaper than current process
• Define a documented process
• Ability to adapt to changes
• The ability to collect statistical information on
  the agenda process
• Provide public access to agenda information

5
Existing Conditions

• The City of Tampa publishes around 20 different
  agendas every month.
• Each agenda can be upwards of 1500 pages with
  support material
• The types of agendas published for the City of
  Tampa include
• Regular Meeting Draft Agenda
• Regular Meeting Final Agenda
• Regular Meeting Ordinance Agenda
• Regular Meeting Resolution Agenda
• Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Special
  Meeting Agenda
• Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Regular
  Meeting Agenda
• Evening Agenda
• Each agenda can result in additional documents
  including Minutes and Action Agendas
• There are around 200 requests per month to place
  items on an agenda
• Each agenda request can require up to 10
  approvals before it is assigned to appear on an
  agenda

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First Step Gathering Information

• The Tampa Request For Proposal
• Understanding the existing paper process
• Survey the users and facilities
• Categorize the users
• Requestors
• Approvers
• Coordinators

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Survey the users
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Survey Says
1 of 8
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Forms and Documents

• Agendas (Compound Documents)
• Regular Meetings
• Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Meetings
• Actions Agendas
• Minutes
• Agenda Requests
• Types of agenda requests
• Resolution, Ordinance, Petition (Staff
  Report/Site Plan), Hearing, Council Ordinance
• Data and Support Information
• Approval Process (Workflow)
• Policy and Rejection
• Assignment to an Agenda

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Agenda Request
Word Form with Macros and attached support
documents
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Approval Process (Workflow)
Documented Process
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Routing Slip
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Routing Slip page 2
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Electronic Signatures

• Electronic Signatures in Global and National
  Commerce Act of June 2001 - "ESIGN, FTC Dept
  of Commerce
• a signature, contract, or other record relating
  to such transaction may not be denied legal
  effect, validity, or enforceability solely
  because it is in electronic form
• Signed electronic records shall contain
  information associated with the signing that
  clearly indicates the printed name of the signer,
  the date and time when the signature was
  executed. The meaning (such as review, approval,
  responsibility, or authorship) associated with
  the signature.
• http//www.ftc.gov/os/2001/06/esign7.htm

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Requestor / Approver Web Site
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Agenda Template
Tampa
Hollywood
DeKalb, GA
Action Agenda
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Coordinator Workstation
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Document Repository

• Web based document system
• Integrates with existing web site
• Field searchable
• Agenda Date
• Agenda Type
• Word searchable
• Hyperlinked results

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System Overview
Request Emails
Event Emails
AgendaMaestro Server
Attachments
Event Manager
Web Pages
System Emails
System Manager
Web Browser Clients
Documents Files
Agenda DBMS
Coordinator Client
System Manager Client
Templates Configuration
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Getting it going

• A focal point on both sides is a good idea
• User Training is Very Important
• What is surveyed is not always the truth
• Use a Support Request form
• Policy and Procedures

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User Training is Very Important

• Training Classes
• Requestor / Approver Training
• Coordinator Training
• ITS Training (ITS support is very important -
  Thanks Don)
• City of Tampa Support Lelia Blevins
• User Manuals (Not sure anyone sees them)

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System Results - Accomplishments

• There are 200 Agenda Requests per month
• The system sends out 2,000 approval / review
  requests per month
• Over 8 gigabytes of electronic documents have
  entered the system since inception
• Currently, no paper agenda requests nor agendas
  are printed to paper by the City Clerks office
  Paperless Office
• All agendas are available to the public
• Process is better, faster, cheaper

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From Press Release of May 12, 2005

• The goal of the Agenda Automation Project is to
  achieve greater efficiency in city government,
  while substantially reducing paper and manpower
  costs.  The initiative has already greatly
  reduced voluminous paper agenda books provided to
  city council members and city staff. The city
  clerk, in conjunction with the Information
  Technology Department, worked with a selected
  vendor DocMaestro, in the development of an
  electronic workflow for processing agenda items
  with electronic signatures affixed by the
  appropriate review departments.

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Press Release 5/12/2005 (Continued)

• During the past two city council meetings,
  council members and other staff members have been
  able to access their agenda materials
  electronically from laptop computers.  This
  Agenda Automation Project was initiated at the
  request of the mayors administration and as a
  result of concerns expressed by city council
  members that access to official documents should
  be available on-line to the public, news media,
  and city staff.

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AgendaMaestro and UtilityMaestro Customers

• City of Tampa
• Hillsborough County
• Marion County
• City of Sarasota
• Pinellas County Utilities
• Hollywood, Florida
• Broward County
• DeKalb County, Georgia
• Fulton County, Georgia
• Augusta, Georgia
• Cobb County, Georgia
• Columbus Consolidated Government, Georgia
• Schenectady, New York
• Georgetown County, South Carolina
• City of Georgetown, South Carolina