HomeMy WebLinkAboutPACKET Town Board Study Session 2016-11-08
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
TOWN BOARD 5:00 p.m. – 6:40 p.m.
STUDY SESSION Board Room
5:00 p.m. Dinner.
5:15 p.m. Discussion of Document Management System.
(Town Clerk Williamson)
6:20 p.m. Trustee & Administrator Comments & Questions.
6:30 p.m. Future Study Session Agenda Items.
(Board Discussion)
6:40 p.m. Adjourn for Town Board Meeting.
Informal discussion among Trustees concerning agenda items or other Town matters may occur before this
meeting at approximately 4:45 p.m.
AGENDA
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Administrative Services Memo
To: Honorable Mayor Jirsa
Board of Trustees
Town Administrator Lancaster
From: Jackie Williamson, Director
Date: November 4, 2016
RE: Document Management
Objective:
To provide the Town Board with an overview of implementing a Town wide document
management system in 2017.
Present Situation:
The department in conjunction with Simplicity Organizing Services formed a document
management team with members from each department to review the Town’s document
management needs, develop an RFP to identify a document management system, and select a
preferred vendor to implement a document management system.
Proposal:
Administrative Services would take the lead on implementing a document management system
and would present a presentation at the November 8, 2016 study session to outlined “Why
Now”, the process used to identify the appropriate software and vendor, outline the benefits,
provide a short demonstration and review the proposed implementation plan and associated
cost.
Advantages:
To educate the Board on the advantages of a document management system.
Disadvantages:
None.
Action Recommended:
Administrative Services and the Document Management team recommend the implementation
of Lasherfiche Rio in 2017 and the associated IT costs as outlined in the White Paper attached.
Budget:
See White Paper for implementation costs and phasing.
Level of Public Interest
Medium. The public would benefit through the availability of public documents, improved
transparency, and increase efficiency.
Sample Motion:
None. Staff request direction on the implementation of a document management system.
Attachments:
White Paper.
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Town of Estes Park
Electronic Document Management Software
White Paper
The Town of Estes Park currently has no comprehensive and cohesive document
management system. Documents are in both paper (significant unknown quantity) and
electronic (2 million files) form. Documents are shared between staff via a shared server,
Google Docs, and email attachments. There are numerous versions and duplicates of
documents. There is also no easily implementable method to apply the Colorado Municipal
Records Retention Schedule to documents so that they may be easily purged within a
given year. All of these issues have increased staff stress and time spent looking for
needed documents, and, at times, inefficient response time to requests by citizens. As a
result, departments have created various internal tracking and document management
systems. These are often based on hyperlinked Excel spreadsheets and/or certain naming
conventions applied to files and folders. What is needed is a comprehensive and cohesive
document management solution that will work Town-wide across departments.
The 2016 budget included funding a consultant to work with staff to develop a Request for
Proposals (RFP) to identify a document management system for the Town. The Town
developed a Document Management Team which consisted of at least one member from
each department to help assess the document management needs. In addition, the
consultant assisted the Town is developing an employee survey to capture the needs of
the Town. A survey of Municipal Clerks was conducted to learn best practices from other
municipalities. As a result, the Town received invaluable information from both the
employees and the Municipal Clerks.
The RFP process yielded 11 responses with a number of different platforms. After careful
evaluation by the selection team, three companies were identified to participate in the
interview process and reference checks completed. Laserfiche Rio was selected as the
document management platform of choice, and Peak Performance, a Silverthorne based
company, was selected as the Value Added Reseller (VAR) vendor.
The Laserfiche platform was chosen as the best Electronic Document Management
Solution (EDMS) software based on several factors. The employee survey yielded several
specific needs that Laserfiche completely answers. These needs included the following
abilities:
Implement record retention for the timely destruction of documents.
Create fillable forms that then link to a workflow- i.e. licensing and permitting.
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Access to information and forms “in the field” hence eliminating the need for
scanning and inputting into the system upon return to the office (code enforcement,
building inspections).
Ease of access by citizens to documents of interest hence enhancing transparency.
Ability of citizens to track where their applications are in the process at the Town-
licensing and permitting.
Ability to assign and use key words associated with a document thus making
document access intuitive and simple.
For a more complete overview of the functional requirements of a Document Management
System and how Peak Performance / Laserfiche Rio meets these requirements, please
see the “Appendix A” document attached.
Laserfiche also came highly recommended from the Municipal Clerks’ survey sent out in
February, with 80% of the Clerk’s using Laserfiche reporting a very high satisfaction rate.
Furthermore, the Team wanted a company with a proven track record, with depth of
experience, and with a solid infrastructure. Laserfiche began in 1987 and since that time
it has been used by 35,000 organization and 5 million users. They are solid, they are
trusted, and they thoroughly meet the document management needs of the Town.
The RFP responses yielded proposals from five Laserfiche VARs (Value Added Resellers).
The remaining six respondents offered different platforms, which were seriously
considered, but fell short when contrasted against Laserfiche. The Team then determined
which of these five would be the best fit for the Town. Peak Performance was selected for
two reasons. First, each of their four references gave them an “excellent” rating. These
references carried significant weight because three of the four were other Colorado
municipalities or counties. Furthermore, several of the references had worked with Peak
Performance for a number of years- ranging from five to eleven- and their experience had
been consistently outstanding from the beginning. From the initial install and configuration
to training employees to ongoing Laserfiche tools and upgrades, each reference had only
positive reviews of Peak Performance’s responsiveness and focus on their (the
municipality or county) best interest. Second, since selecting Peak Performance, the
company has continued to be extremely responsive with answers to questions and
requests for clarification about the product and pricing.
The Document Management Team took this project seriously and through careful vetting
and consideration of Town-wide needs, chose the best platform, Laserfiche Rio, and the
best VAR, Peak Performance, as the solution to the Town’s document management needs.
Why is Electronic Document Management System (EDMS) important for the Town at this
time?
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There are a number of reasons to consider document management, including:
Reduced Storage Space
Enhanced Document Security and Collaboration Between Departments
Improved Regulatory Compliance/Record Retention
Significantly Improved and Efficient Retrieval
Better Backup and Disaster Recovery
Enhanced Transparency and Improved Access to Public Records
Improved Workflow
Reduced Storage Space
An electronic document management solution (EDMS) that can reduce the need for file
cabinets, boxes and storage bins is a valuable asset, freeing up precious office space.
Documents that have to be kept as hard copies can often be stored in less expensive
locations, such as an offsite warehouse or vault. As the Town has grown office space and
meeting spaces are difficult to come by due in part by the need to store paper files. An
EDMS system would free up valuable office space. Facilities has estimated the cost of
office space at $350/sq. ft. with the average office consisting of 120 sq. ft. The Town
currently has approximately 6 office spaces full of paper documents at this time at a cost
estimate of $252,000. This does not include the cost of filing cabinets, boxes, filing racks,
etc. utilized for the storage of the ongoing paper collection.
Enhanced Document Security and Collaboration Between Departments
A critical element an EDMS system can address is the potential vulnerability of shared
electronic documents among departments and staff. The security provided through the
system can address concerns that a document may be changed, moved or accidentally
deleted, thereby eliminating the need for staff to save multiple copies of documents in
several locations. An EDMS leaves an audit trail of who has viewed a document, when it
was accessed, and how it may have been modified. The software provides version control
with a check in and check out system to assist with document collaboration and added
knowledge the user is viewing the latest version of a document. Collaboration is further
enhanced by widely sharing documents through viewing rights and limiting editing
permissions to maintain the integrity of documents. Both the added security and
collaboration of an EDMS system provides efficiencies in workflow within and between
departments.
Improved Regulatory Compliance/Record Management
Compliance requirements for certain documents can be quite complex. Non-conformance
can lead to fines, revoked licenses, and in some cases criminal liability. Federal and state
regulatory regulations such as Sarbanes Oxley and HIPAA mandate strict security and
privacy guidelines. EDMS reduces the risk of non-compliance. The Town’s records
retention schedule can be automated, and new documents can be more easily classified
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and stored moving forward. Laserfiche Rio automatically assigns retention schedules and
lets the information records administrator know when documents are up for disposition.
Significantly Improved and Efficient Retrieval
Searching for and retrieving documents can be very time consuming and costly. Below are
published statistics illustrating the costs related to the average time spent managing paper
documents:
Organizations spend $20 in labor to file a document, $120 in labor to find a
misfiled document, and $220 in labor to reproduce a lost document.
7.5% of all documents get lost; 3% of the remainder get misfiled.
Professionals spend 5 to 15% of their time reading information, and up to 50%
of their time looking for it.
A document management solution can be a powerful, time-saving tool. Laserfiche can
retrieve files by a word or phrase in a document – full text search, or apply index categories
to a document or folder. The EDMS system can also provide access to documents
remotely, such as in the field to provide employees real time access to document files, i.e.
building plans, address files, etc. The system can integrate into business applications to
enhance their functionality.
Better Backup and Disaster Recovery
Digital archiving of documents acts as a backup to paper documents which can be
destroyed by fire and flood and other disasters. With a EDMS, documents are traceable
and can be tracked within a range of criteria. The imaged documents are centrally stored
and backup, therefore, they cannot be lost or misplaced. Documents are digitized and
archived once they are entered into the system.
Enhanced Transparency and Improved Access to Public Records
EDMS systems allow for documents to be accessed by the public. The system allows
document types to be identified as public and viewable through the Town’s website. This
allows for increased transparency and ease of retrieval by the public, thereby reducing the
number of open records request. Again, workflow is improved and efficiencies are realized.
Improving the Town’s relationship with its customers/constituents has been a goal of past
and current Board members.
Improved Workflow - Laserfiche Forms and Workflow
EDMS provides for improvements in business processes and can allow for better workflow
management and monitoring. Many of the Town’s current workflow processes are manual
and inefficient. Implementation of Laserfiche Rio in other organizations has led to realized
efficiency by leveraging enhanced workflow processes of approximately 50 -75%, thereby
reducing the cost of services to the taxpayers.
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Document management is essential for the Town to shift time and focus to critical daily
tasks rather than filing and looking for documents. A compelling feature of an EDMS
system such as Laserfiche is the added features and functionality of the forms and
workflow components. Tasks could be automated to increase process efficiency through
the auto population of forms for business and liquor licensing, building permits and
inspections, code violations, streamline invoice payments through an automated routing
system for approval, agenda management, open records requests, populating new hire
paperwork, work orders, allowing real time access to documents in the field and completion
of paperwork in the field such as inspections, etc. The workflow process opportunities are
critical for the Town to gain efficiencies in everyday tasks and eliminating the need for
multiple manual processes. Improved work flow would allow the Town to address the
growing need to do more with less.
A document management system that includes the flexibility to address workflow
processes would provide tangible benefits to not only the staff but the public as well. A
number of departments have either investigated software or implemented software to
address workflow needs. A system such as Laserfiche that can address workflow would
provide the Town with the flexibility to address these needs with one consistent software
package, thereby reducing costs and maintenance of multiple systems.
Real World Examples of Savings from Local Colorado Government Entities.
Town of Vail
“Vail implemented Laserfiche in response to a mushrooming volume of paper records and
a growing need to quickly share information between town departments [Town of Estes
Park’s current situation]. They began their project in the Human Resources Department.
….The solution has been extended to the departments of the Clerk, Fleet Maintenance,
Administration, Legal, Fire, Community Development, Finance, and Public Works. What
began with a few hundred documents, expanded to 91 users managing over 108,000
documents. The project has eliminated the equivalent of over 1,230 boxes of paper records
[elimination of paper] and has led to a number of process improvements in Finance,
Community Development and the Fire Department [process improvements / time savings].
In addition, the box destruction has opened up over 1,000 square feet of floor space for
additional office and conference room space [space savings]. The town uses the Weblink
read-only web client to provide public access to public documents through a link on their
website [transparency and access to citizens]. “
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Community Development Tracking
EnerGov Conversion: “In late 2014, Garfield County added Laserfiche Forms to their
system. The initiative was led by the Community Development department. The
department was previously using EnerGov to track, manage, and create their Building and
Planning permits. However, their version of EnerGov was outdated and they were looking
at an expensive upgrade to move to the current version. Garfield County contacted Peak
Performance to analyze whether or not the functions managed by EnerGov could be
replaced with Laserfiche. Peak Performance worked closely with the department to create
a custom solution that replaced the functions previously performed with EnerGov. The
solution not only saved the County thousands of dollars, it also improved efficiency.”
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Proposed Implementation
Staff would propose a phased approach to the implementation in an effort to begin realizing
the improved productivity and cost savings to the Town and the community.
Phase I
Purchase 25 licenses $ 79,554
Sql Servers & Licenses $ 53,000
Misc IT Hardware & Training $ 13,000
IT Consultant $ 25,000
Total: $165,554
This would allow the Town to implement the new document management system and begin
building workflow processes that can be rolled out to the other departments in Phase II.
Phase I efforts would be focused on the Clerk’s Office and Utilities.
Phase II
Purchase Add’l 25 Licenses $30,800
Annual Service Support $17,599
IT Consultant $25,000
Server Depreciation $15,910
Total: $89,309
Phase II would include the purchase of an additional 25 licenses and rollout to other
departments in the Town.
Phase III
Public Portal $ 25,000
Public Web Servers $ 20,000
Security Audit $ 6,000
Annual Service Support $ 23,559
IT Consultant $ 40,000
Server Depreciation $ 19,910
Total: $134,469
Phase III would add the web portal access for the public and the staff. After this
implementation the cost would be maintenance. The Town could also reassess at this
point in time as to whether an IT consultant should be used or hire an employee to manage
the servers.
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FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS – APPENDIX A
Town of Estes Park
Request for Proposals: Electronic Document Management Solution
APPENDIX A: FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Town of Estes Park
Electronic Document Management RFP
Functional Requirements
General Functional Requirement Response Comment
General
1. Electronically manages all digital records throughout their
lifecycle, including word processing documents, spreadsheets,
presentations, electronic forms, scanned images and other
electronic documents, website and Intranet content, e‐
reports, electronic records, collaborative tools, and other
digital assets.
Y Any electronic file, regardless of
format, may be stored and
managed in Laserfiche. These files
are subject to the Retention
policies of the Records Series in
which they are filed.
2. Has the flexibility to maintain document content,context,and
structure.
Y
3. Quickly and easily access, add and update information to file
folders, regardless of format. Y Laserfiche is very user‐friendly and
easy to use regardless of file format
involved.
Migration
4. Enable document migration from current Windows
Server system, including but not limited to already
scanned and organized documents from Windows‐based
files, Microsoft Office, Adobe, TIFs, Jpegs, etc. and
existing file systems.
Y Files can be either moved and
stored in their native file format or
converted to images during
migration. Groups of documents or
complete folders can be imported
at one time. Laserfiche will retain
the subfolder structure upon
import. Workflow could be used
for any re‐organization necessary.
Record Retention
5. Automate consistent records retention policies so that
record retention is automatically assigned to documents
Y Any file added under a Record
Series will inherit the rules set on
that Series. The use of Workflow
Instructions: Vendor must indicate whether or not the proposed solution satisfies each of the
following
Y- Fully meets the requirement and is currently in use at another site
D- Functionality is provided in a different manner than stated- please describe fully in
Comment field
M- Modification required and provided at no additional cost
C- Modification required at an additional cost- cost must be listed in Comment
filed N-Functionality is not present in the proposed application
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in the system. can automate assignment of
Records Series based on field
values.
6. Log all system activity, providing an audit trail that can
be used to prove adherence to the records management
plan and compliance with regulations.
Y Audited activities are saved in log
files. Reports may be run on these
logs using the Laserfiche Audit Trail
Reporting tool or a 3rd party
reporting tool of the customer’s
choice.
7. Final check control before documents are deleted due to
record retention parameters.
Y A Records Manager must confirm
deletion. No files will be
automatically purged as per DOD
5015.2 requirements.
Collaboration / Versioning
8. Enable collaboration between multiple authorized users
to review and edit the same file with easily
understandable and trackable version control.
Y Versioning can be enabled on any
file added to the Laserfiche system.
9. Check‐out control of documents.
Y
This feature is available in through
the Client interface.
10. Eliminate redundancy in records‐ elimination of
duplication of versions, drafts, etc. so only final version is
retained in system.
Y This would be done by a user once
the record is final.
Organization / Ease of Use
11. Automate filing, indexing and processing.
Y Several tools are included in the
core product for automation of
filing, indexing and processing ‐–
OCR Engine and Workflow.
However, additional capture
products are available at an
additional cost. More specific
information on types of documents
would be needed to see if any of
these tools are needed.
12. Clear organization of documents in the system so can be
used by any authorized user.
Y
13. Ability to honor and integrate different naming
conventions by different departments but still have
accessible and findable by other departments or naming
convention parameters that work for all departments.
Y Search methods ensure users not
familiar with structure can find
files. Saved searches and Search
Forms can be used to help users
(included public users) find
documents easily.
14. Flexible and powerful search capabilities. Possibly
including OCR above “normal” document management
search capabilities across platforms.
Y Search options include OCR, entry
name, field searching,
creation/modification date, user, as
well as many other methods.
Saved searches and Search Forms
can be used to help users (included
public users) find documents easily.
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Integration with Google Docs / Gmail
15. Ability to integrate with Google Docs and Gmail, especially
with regard to incorporating long‐term value email into the
overall document management system.
Y Files can be imported directly from
Google Docs to a Laserfiche
repository. Gmail correspondence
can be virtually printed into a
Laserfiche repository using the
Laserfiche Snapshot print driver.
Off‐site Access
16. Utilize web portals for authorized users to work
remotely.
Y Web Access is the portal that will
be used by Named users.
17. Utilize web portals for citizens to access information.Y The Public Portal has been included
in the pricing. Screenshots of the
portal possibilities have been
included in the narrative.
More “Active” Functions
18. Able to create time reminders for future action on
documents in the system (i.e. specific individual staff
follow‐up, 1 year renewable contracts, expiring IGAs,
permits, etc.).
Y Workflow is included and can be
configured to set up time
reminders as described.
19. Ability to utilize authentic electronic signatures /
integration with DocuSign
Y Information and screenshots are
shown in the narrative.
20. Fillable forms with ability to cross‐populate entered data
across multiple forms.
Y A Forms Business Process can have
one master form for data
collection. The values collected
with the master form can be shared
across multiple forms.
21. Solution for in‐the‐field access needs‐access to
information as well as access to fillable forms / data
entry that tie back to the system
Y Users in‐the‐field can input data
using a Form or directly into a
Laserfiche repository using a
mobile device via Laserfiche’s
Mobile App.
22. Automate document workflow (e.g., document routing).Y Workflow is part of core product.
Security and Back Up
23. Robust back‐up and security (from outside intrusion) for
all documents in the system if a cloud based solution is
proposed.
N We are not proposing a cloud
based solution.
24. Vendor’s back‐up servers redundantly located in several
locations throughout the country (if a cloud based
solution is proposed).
N We are not proposing a cloud
based solution.
25. Protect confidential files with robust security and
permissions.
Y
Hosted or Client Based
26. Please describe whether your solution can be hosted on‐
site (at the Town, with Town‐based servers), or is cloud‐
based, or if both options are available.
N / A
Not applicable within this chart‐
please disregard.
Add‐On Modules
27a. Licensing (Business, Contractors, Dog,Liquor,Vacation
Y
This would be accomplished
through the use of Laserfiche
Forms, Workflow and possibly the
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Homes): Form creation, tracking, sorting by a variety of
means (name, date, payment, etc.), notification of
impending expiration, etc.
Forms Portal. All of these products
are included in the main proposal.
Additional training or configuration
might be necessary to accomplish
these goals. We charge $150/hour
for these services or by the project.
The Town of Avon and the
Colorado River District currently
use Laserfiche for managing their
contracts.
27b. Building Permits: Form creation, routing, tracking,
access by a variety of methods (address, name, date,
payment, permit number, etc.), notification of
expiration, online access for customers to check status
of permits & inspection reports, etc.
Y
This would be accomplished
through the use of Laserfiche
Forms, Workflow and the Forms
Portal. All of these products are
included in the main proposal.
Additional training or configuration
might be necessary to accomplish
these goals. We charge $150/hour
for these services or by the project.
Garfield County Government is
using Laserfiche Forms internally
for managing and creating Building
Permits.
27c. Invoice Routing: Routing of invoices received
electronically to the proper department for electronic
signature approval with integration of the Purchase
Order number and return to the finance office for
payment. Tracking of invoices not yet returned /
overdue. Ability to query in a variety of ways‐ vendor
name, department name, payments made, etc.
Y
This would be accomplished
through the use of Workflow and
possibly Laserfiche Forms. All of
these products are included in the
main proposal. Additional training
or configuration might be
necessary to accomplish these
goals. We charge $150/hour for
these services or by the project.
The Glenwood Hot Springs Pool is
using Laserfiche for a similar
project of PO Creation and
Approval.
27d. Agenda / Packet Management: Creation of agendas for
meetings; ability to create, track, and incorporate
meeting materials from various departments for board
packets ahead of meetings; etc.
Y
This would be accomplished
through the use of Laserfiche
Forms, Workflow and the Forms
Portal. All of these products are
included in the main proposal.
Additional training or configuration
might be necessary to accomplish
these goals. We charge $150/hour
for these services or by the project.
Gunnison County Government is
using Laserfiche to manage and
track Agenda Item Submission and
Approval.
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November 22, 2016
No Study Session
December 13, 2016
Visit from Sam Mamet – CML
Year end review of 2016 Strategic
Plan
January 10, 2017
Discussion of Hydrology Study Results
January 24, 2017
Discussion of Home Rule
Items Approved - Unscheduled:
(Items are not in order of priority)
Short update on the Downtown
Neighborhood plan.
Discuss the role of Town Government
in economic development as it relates
to the Estes Valley EDC and other
organizations.
Study Session Items for Board
Consideration:
Discussion of Rural Transportation
Authority.
How to do the Town Administrator’s
Evaluation.
Future Town Board Study Session Agenda Items
November 8, 2016
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