Time Management – in the service of democracy
What may a building permit cost? Ekerö already had a price list for their services, but do they take out they charge correct for the service? For a municipality, the pricing is not as simple as supply and demand. They act as a service of society.
– To charge the correct amount is important for all types of businesses, but for a municipality is the price closest to a democratic issue, says Johan Hagland, Environmental and Planning Manager in Ekerö. Both a gain and a loss strikes at our taxpayers, but in different ways.
Environmental and City Planning works on behalf of Ekerös City Council and Building Department. Office staff of 30 manages projects in areas such as retail and transport planning and preparation of maps. In one year the municipality deals with about 800 cases where involving the processing of building permits are dominant in number.
– We handle more than 500 building permits each year, and we know how long calendar time normally required, says John Hagland. What we now want to know is exactly how much work it actually is per case. How well does the price list work with really equality, so to speak?
A building permit application consists of several well-defined moments where management follows clear procedures. Time worked reported previously in a flexitime system linked to the payroll system. What was missing was support system to be able to connect the time worked with individual cases or projects.
– We realized that we needed to get our administrators to start reporting how much time they spend on each service. Unfortunately, there is little time reporting options for the public sector, says John Hagland. We needed to find a solution that would work best for us.
In spring 2013 Ekerö got in contact with Exicom Software, and a feasibility study was initiated. It resulted in a requirements analysis and a set of requirements. This was followed by the usual public procurement.
– We received many offers, but in the end the choice fell on Exicoms product Copernicus Time, says John Hagland. They simply offered the best solution at a competitive price.
– Considering that we are new to this, it has been a very good implementation. Everyone thinks it’s easy and convenient to report time, says John Hagland. I think I already notice that officers have had better control of the worked performed.
– Sure, we want to know that we are doing the right things at the right time and the right price. But it’s also about offering our residents the best possible municipal services, concludes Johan Hagland.