GOVERNMENT TECHNOLOGY/Making the most of support services
When local government officials are choosing software vendors, they should consider the range of support services the vendors offer in addition to the features of the software. Although support services cost extra, they can be a good investment for cities and counties that know how to take advantage of them.
If vendors do not inform government officials of the types of services available, staff members should make sure to ask them what they offer. In addition, before signing up for support services, officials should check with other local governments that use the vendors’ support services to gauge their quality.
Cities and counties often need onsite technical support when applications are first installed, and many pay for vendors to provide ongoing support — either by telephone, e-mail or the Internet — to address any problems that arise after installation. However, customer support can go well beyond technical help and can include various training and educational opportunities.
For example, some vendors organize conferences or user group meetings to give software users opportunities to learn from each other and to expand their knowledge of the software and the vendor. By attending user conferences, local governments join a community of users that can band together to ask for software changes. “You’ve got a much more powerful case for influencing upcoming modifications to the software if you approach the vendor saying, ‘All 10 cities in our region have a need for such and such an application. Can you build it into the next upgrade?’” says Dave Gray, senior community services supervisor for San Mateo, Calif.
When city or county agencies meet with vendors to address problems or to learn more about vendor services, they can make the most of their time by setting objectives and identifying desired outcomes before the meeting. “We put together ideas for strategies as well as a list of questions we want answered,” Gray notes.
San Mateo officials knew they needed a lot of support from their parks and recreation software vendor when they began rolling out new applications in 1995. The city needed the software to handle memberships, facility booking, cashier sales and program registration. Because the software was new to the city and contained a number of specialized features, the city needed its vendor to provide onsite training when modules were installed and to be available by phone to troubleshoot problems.
City officials made a point of determining what days of the week and what hours of the day potential vendors provided technical support. The city also sought a vendor that dedicated personnel to answering technical calls in person and responding quickly to problems. “No one wants to have to go to voicemail,” Gray says.
The city chose a vendor that could answer employees’ questions quickly, and it initially gave a number of employees direct access to the vendor when they had problems. However, once the applications were in use, Gray found that he was unaware of many problems employees were having. As a result, the city is building an in-house knowledge base that Gray manages. Now, employees contact him with problems before contacting the vendor. “It allows me to keep in touch with any issues that come up, so I’m not out of the loop,” Gray says.
When local governments are purchasing support services, they should look for vendors that are available for onsite training when applications are installed and that can address user problems quickly following installation. Also, they should look for opportunities to attend continuing education events such as regional or national user conferences to stay current on software developments.
The author is managing consultant, strategic solutions, for Burnaby, B.C., Canada-based Class Software Solutions.
