Another budget season has come and gone, so say “goodbye” to 2021-2022 and “hello” to 2022-2023. The new fiscal year starts with the highest inflation rate in over 40 years, looming news of a housing market slow down and possible recession. In addition, the federal government is “trying” to move past the COVID-19 pandemic, and the local government is holding their breath contemplating what the new normal will be and how to balance the checkbook!

Along with budget shortfalls, the changing labor market is also causing concern in the government sector. According to the 2018 State and Local Government Workforce Trends, both retirements and the challenges of attracting younger workers to public service careers rank among the top concerns for government agencies. With the current post-pandemic environment of more and more employees wanting (requiring) a virtual work option, the staffing shortages and retention appear to be a long-term problem.

Many agencies have learned to do more with less, resulting in employees being asked to do more and more; but what is being sacrificed? There are only so many hours in a day and days in a week. Is there proper oversight for the vendors? Are the contracts being scrutinized? Are there overlapping or unneeded services in place? In other words, are things as efficient as they could be? Are you getting the best services for the lowest prices?

Many innovative organizations are using business intelligence services to fill the gaps and augment the work their current staff is doing. The definition of Business Intelligence (BI) is “Industry specific experts’ use of historical, current, and predictive information to identify, design, and implement operational efficiency strategies.” Leveraging BI/Industry experts to review, report, implement, and audit improvements to agreements, operations, and pricing in support of staff brings a whole different level of expertise and attention to critical and costly services. An extra set of eyes is always a good thing when it comes to managing the tax-payers’ dollars–and when trying to do more with less–becomes an impactful tool. Further, staff appreciates the assistance BI delivers, allowing them to focus on other important priorities and initiatives.

The City of Montebello utilized ProcureAmerica’s BI services to assist in several cost categories to ensure the city was being as efficient as possible in those areas. The project was 100% self-funded and did not require any time or resources from the city while delivering much needed cost reduction.

“The review teams were thorough and required very little of my staff’s time to complete the projects,” said City of Montebello Director of Finance Michcael Solorza. “The firm’s in-depth analysis uncovered billing discrepancies that had been undetected for many years. They were able to identify savings in each of the categories and assist us in improving operations and increasing efficiencies. Throughout the process, ProcureAmerica was very easy to work with and clearly communicated and documented its results.”

“We view ourselves as an extension of our client’s workforce in a support role,” said ProcureAmerica Vice President Todd Main. “Working for and with local government is highly rewarding from a personal perspective. It’s simply an honor!”

 

About ProcureAmerica

ProcureAmerica provides business intelligence services to over 110 government agencies in California alone and delivers increased service levels, vendor transparency, and net cost reduction. The firm provides expertise in 6 cost categories; utilities, waste services, print management, telecommunications, treasury, and technology. The shared-in-savings platform is a win-win for government, as there is no cost for the reviews, and they are only compensated on actual realized and verified savings (never projected).