Ask a sample of American city-dwellers about the quality of their city governments, and you’ll most likely hear words such as “slow,” “inefficient,” “confusing,” and “complex.” And those are among the more polite terms you might hear.
The city of Oakland, Calif., was no exception. Saddled with antiquated IT systems that were unreliable, expensive to maintain, and inaccessible to most residents, the city government found it difficult to deliver services where they were needed most. Residents were forced to submit paper forms and visit government offices to do business with the city—an impossible task for the many who lacked the time, transportation, or childcare to do so.
A Radical Modernization with OutSystems
The City of Oakland’s CIO, Andrew “Pete” Peterson, recognized the challenge and what to do about it. Oakland engaged with OutSystems to leverage their low-code platform, enabling the development of accessible, user-friendly web-based applications for doing business with the city. The applications replaced many of the legacy manual, paper-based processes, and government office visits.
The results:
- Eight applications developed in 12 months
- 24/7 access to information and services by residents from their homes, schools, and workplaces
- $1 million saved over the first year in external development costs and ongoing maintenance of legacy systems
- A solid, turnkey foundation for Oakland’s internal development staff to provide additional apps
How T4S Partners Drives Digital Transformation with OutSystems
T4S Partners, an experienced OutSystems partner, brings OutSystems’ technology to organizations large and small, driving modernization and digital transformation in both the public and private sectors. We guide our clients through the stages of digital maturity:
- Modernization of the IT technology and data systems environment
- Digital transformation, adopting scalable business processes
- Digital maturity that enables competitive differentiation
- Business transformation that delivers sustained performance
In this way, T4S Partners uncovers the connection between digital maturity and financial performance.
For municipal governments like the City of Oakland, we strive to answer key questions at each stage, such as:
- What are the greatest pain points that can be addressed most easily by systems modernization for “quick wins”?
- How can the city government streamline its business processes to reduce inefficiencies and deliver services faster to more residents?
- How can the government leverage modern technology and transformed processes to make the city a more attractive place for people to live and start businesses, thereby increasing the tax base?
- How can these tools and processes strengthen the relationship between the government and the city’s residents and businesses?
This approach, coupled with OutSystems’ cutting-edge low-code development platform, is how T4S Partners guides our clients’ internal resources to bring about their digital transformation and sustain it on their own.
Digital Transformation Is a Journey, Not a Destination
The City of Oakland has a long way to go in its digital maturity. Additional apps must be developed and made available to a larger share of the city’s residents. Many more city government processes must be examined and reimagined to eliminate inefficiency, confusion, and duplication.
But by building on the foundation established with the help of OutSystems, Oakland finds itself in a position to continue delivering more services more rapidly to more residents.
T4S Partners is ready to help guide your organization through its modernization, digital transformation, and digital maturity using OutSystems’ technology. Contact us today to learn more.