Every year at the ALGIM conference, local councils compete for the ICT Project of the Year, an award that recognises outstanding project management success. The award always has exceptional entries and Psoda proudly maintains our tradition of sponsoring this prestigious award.
Every year we have the honour of introducing the three finalists, the third of which for 2023 is Hutt City Council.
Background
When Hutt City Council was given an opportunity to upgrade its finance system at no cost, the organisation jumped at the chance. Recognising the potential of the new system to improve their financial capability, the council embraced this chance for transformation.
The project
The Finance Services Refresh project aimed to simplify access to consistent and reliable financial data from a single source system. It sought to eliminate the need for manual intervention in financial processes and enhance financial capabilities across the council group.
The council was already operating on the Ci platform T1, so an upgrade to the latest version, T1 CiAnywhere, made sense. This advanced version brought significant improvements, including dashboard reporting and analytics features, which were previously underutilised. This was the catalyst for the launch of the FSR project.
The Finance System Refresh project encompassed several components, including:
- A review of the Chart of Accounts
- A thorough examination of access rights
- An upgrade to Financials
- Enhancements to enterprise budgeting
- Introduction of new modules and functionalities
The FSR Project was firmly aligned with Hutt City Council’s Go Digital Programme strategic focus areas. It aimed to enhance productivity, accessibility, information and analytics, digital design and customer-centricity.
Upgrading the TechnologyOne finance system from Ci to CiAnywhere was a significant step in this strategic direction.
Outcome
On July 1, 2022, the modernised CiAnywhere finance system was launched, accompanied by changes to the general ledger and the introduction of the project ledger. These changes laid the foundation for several subsequent enhancements to the system. One notable addition was a dashboard feature that provided a comprehensive overview of HCC’s financial landscape.
In February 2023, a contracts module was introduced, further bolstering the capabilities of the finance system.
The FSR project reached its successful conclusion on April 20, 2023. By upgrading its finance system, Hutt City Council has:
- Consolidated information from multiple sources into a single repository
- Increased the financial management capability of staff
- Gained access to proactive releases of software by moving from on-premise to the cloud
The FSR Project, driven by a forward-thinking vision, successfully transformed Hutt City Council’s financial toolset. It elevated financial capabilities across the business, enhancing financial management practices for revenue and expenditure budgets. This project stood as a testament to the council’s commitment to progress and innovation.
Hutt City Council’s Finance Services Refresh Project has modernised its financial capabilities and demonstrated what can be achieved when local government embraces innovation and strategic alignment.
The awards
Hutt City Council is one of three finalists in this year’s ALGIM ICT Project of the Year award sponsored by Psoda. The winner will be announced during the ALGIM 2023 conference in Wellington.
Other finalists
