Tonya Walton, Orange County

Streamlining the Budget Process

S T R E A M L I NI N G THE BUDGET PROCESSUSING TECHNOLOGY

Tonya Wal ton , C i ty o f Ra le igh

2 0 1 4 P u b l i c A d m i n i s t r a t i o n C o n f e r e n c e

Overview

Streamlining Process

• Operating/Capital• Performance

Measurement

• Meetings

• Stakeholder Approval

Technology Options

• Data Collection

• Analysis

• Forecasting

• Document Publication

Step 1. Identify challenging areas.

Challenges Consider

Documents Soliciting information from departments; Published documents

Decision-Making Benchmarking; Performance Assessment

CIP Process Project management; Prioritization; Capital assessment

Deliberations On-demand analysis

Step 2: Map the data.

Who is are the stakeholders? Internal and external supporters?

People1

What are we tracking? How does the data travel?Data2

TechnologyWhat software, hardware, and skillsets are available to us?

3

OutcomesWhat are we trying to produce and achieve with this process?

4

Step 3: Select a project.

• Environmental Factors

• 80/20 Principle

• Strategic Plans

Budgeting Technology Solutions

• GFOA Market Research Report (link)

– Analyzed software solutions for operating and capital budgets

– Reviewed 10 Corporate Performance Management (CPM) and Relational Systems

• No Silver Bullet

– The single, stand-alone system is rare.

Budgeting Technology Solutions

• Fiscal Health Diagnostic Tool– Center for Priority Based

Budgeting (link)– On-Demand Analysis– Budget Work Sessions

• ASAP Utilities– MS Excel Add-In (link)– 300+ Macro tools added to

the MS Excel Ribbon

Conclusion

• Technology is not a panacea.

• Streamlining Process– Identify challenges, map the data and select a

project.

• Identify Budget Technology Options– Evaluate options based on your needs, not

wants.

Tonya WaltonBudget & Management Analyst, City of Raleightonya.walton@raleighnc.gov