As local government leaves the pandemic era and regains its traditional operating footing, the harsh reality of budget challenges is again front and center. We are in the heart of budget season/implementation, and balancing the government checkbook is the focus of many policy makers and senior staff. In addition, we are experiencing the highest inflation levels in the past 40 years. Where are there places to minimize cost without cutting services? How can we do more with less or repurpose the resources we have to address shortfalls?

Where many expenses are viewed as “fixed” or appear to be already “optimized,” several California counties are taking a deeper look at everyday expenses and using business intelligence (BI) to help find efficiencies. Case in point are one Northern California County (Santa Clara County) and one Southern California County (Orange County). Each commissioned ProcureAmerica–the state’s leading government BI firm–to look at their 8-figure telecom budgets with the primary goal of lowering cost without sacrificing any functionality. Each county had the same question: Can we maintain or even improve service levels with top tier carriers and still reduce cost? The answer has been an emphatic “yes”!

“You can’t turn on television without seeing Lily from AT&T announcing a new mobilephone program,” says ProcureAmerica CEO Fred Armendariz in a half-joking way. “The telecom industry is constantly introducing new programs, products, and services that can dramatically reduce cost while simultaneously increasing service levels–providing the best of both worlds for our public sector clients.”

Lowering cost and raising service levels is the “holy grail” of any organization, but where do you start? How much staff time and or other resources does the effort require? In other words, is the “juice worth the squeeze?” The simple answer is an astounding YES! The support needed from the client’s side of the equation is negligible. The study is 100% self-funding through a Shared-in-Savings program available to government agencies, and highly impactful from a cost reduction perspective-saving each of these two counties 6 and 7 figures each–all while increasing service levels!

How? First, there is a Regional Cooperative Agreement available for these services that makes the procurement aspect simple (OC-RCA-017-C023940). This agreement is on a pure shared-in-savings model, making the project a net add to the bottom line. Second, the BI firm (ProcureAmerica) manages the project from A to Z (design, implementation, result measurement) without causing disruption to operations nor drawing on valuable staff time. Lastly, the results are 6- and 7-figure annual cost reductions that deliver an evergreen legacy in terms of budget impact.

“Supporting local government during these challenging times is the highlight of my career; It’s an honor to support of California cities, counties, and other agencies,” said ProcureAmerica Vice President Todd Main.

Project results:

County of Orange: In 2021, ProcureAmerica was commissioned by the County to perform countywide cost reduction telecom review.
Total project savings: Over $2.6 million

County of Santa Clara: In 2022, ProcureAmerica was commissioned by the County to perform a countywide cost reduction telecom review.
Total project savings: $6,100,000

“Working with Procure America has delivered significant cost reduction to the County with minimal staff time investment,” said County of Santa Cruz Deputy County Administrative Officer Matt Machado. “Their service deliverables have been a significant ‘net add’ to the County’s financial well-being.”

 

About ProcureAmerica

ProcureAmerica is the nation’s leading business intelligence company supporting government, education, healthcare and private industry. Our services support and deliver operational efficiency, fiscal responsibility, expense transparency and net cost reduction. We have industry expertise in six specific expense categories: Utilities, Waste & Recycling, Telecommunications, Print Management, Technology Optimization, and Treasury.