Doing the best for citizens with a lean local government is the reality for municipalities across North America today, as budget constraints and staff reductions have fundamentally altered public expectations.
Leading and serving residents now requires making the most out of staff time, looking for ways to improve efficiency whenever possible, and getting creative.
The COVID-19 pandemic prompted budget cuts and a steep decline in overall employment among state and local governments. Even years later, many municipalities haven’t fully recovered and are now struggling to fill open positions.
It’s more important than ever to be strategic about meeting these growing demands for services and getting the most done in a smarter, more efficient way.
What Does It Mean to Be a Lean Local Government?
A lean local government isn’t just slim — it’s carefully structured to maximize efficiency every step of the way. The concept dates back more than a century, popularly attributed to Henry Ford for his embrace of the need to develop new processes to meet goals that didn’t require spending more money.
Municipal World defines lean as its own philosophy, focusing on creating citizen value while eliminating waste. Instead of looking for efficiencies in individual departments and processes, it seeks to improve the entire stream of steps and workflows that ultimately result in services to citizens.
Examples of this approach to government have been around for decades, such as looking for ways to make services more accessible, better defining who these municipal professionals are serving, and sustaining a focus on efficiency to cut out waste wherever it is.
Where Time Is Wasted in Local Government
Instances of wasted time are everywhere in many local government processes, with inefficient workflows and breakdowns in communication slowing things down unnecessarily.
Things like manual permit reviews, in-person visits to the office to learn about application updates, and disconnected systems can add up a little at a time to become significant distractions from your core mission.
If staff are spending hours tracking down files, re-entering data they’ve already collected in the field, or playing phone tag with residents to let them know about application approvals, these are all signs of lost productivity.
This is a major problem considering many local governments are already understaffed or having a hard time finding more professionals to fill job openings. A recent report in Minnesota, for example, said staffing shortages in local governments there are most severe in certain fields, including building inspections — and even if the budget allows for hiring, they’re struggling to recruit enough workers.
Another pitfall is the duplication of tasks across departments, which can happen, unfortunately, all too often when systems and platforms aren’t communicating with each other or sharing the latest real-time information.
How the Right Software Empowers Lean Governments
One crucial answer to these problems is adopting high-tech tools that can stop wasting staff time. In a 2020 survey by Power Almanac, 75% of senior government officials said new software had a profoundly positive impact on their departments’ reliability, productivity, or user experience.
If you’re looking to spend more time serving residents and less time doing administrative tasks, innovation is a necessity. Changing processes and workflows by adopting modern systems can make all the difference.
Digital platforms like Cloudpermit can significantly reduce the burden on staff by automating routine tasks, including status updates to permit or license applicants and scheduling inspections.
Moving applications online and away from paper can significantly speed things up. Still, even the process of approving building permits can halt if builders and residents submit incomplete documents without the necessary details for approval. By requiring complete applications before submission, Cloudpermit prevents this back-and-forth request for additional information.
It's also imperative that staff can get work done wherever they are. An inspector who completes their report in the field but then must re-enter notes and photos back in the office is slowed down by a duplication of effort. Mobile inspection apps that work online or offline can boost productivity, even when workers are far from the office.
Real-time communication across departments can also streamline an entire local government, and modern software makes this possible by syncing data and providing access to the latest information with any mobile device or computer.
The Results of Embracing Digital Tools
The payoff of adopting modern software is huge for lean local governments. In the City of Garnett, Kansas, Cloudpermit’s mobile inspections app and easy-to-use online community development platform has sped up approvals and cut the time it takes in half compared to former paper-based processes.
The City of Brantford, Ontario, made the digital leap for its planning department in 2022, which is how it managed to keep up with growing development in the community. Tracking data and sharing information with other departments and stakeholders is much simpler.
Cloudpermit has made managing our high volume of development files much easier,” said Jeff Medeiros, Acting Manager of Development and Planning for Brantford. “I believe that many governments would benefit from adopting online platforms like this.”
In Roscommon Township, Michigan, Zoning Administrator and Ordinance Enforcement Officer Rob Christian said this modern platform for community development has simplified and transformed permitting and code processes.
It’s allowed me to be a lot more efficient with what I do and how I do it,” he said.
Level the Playing Field with Software for Municipalities of Any Size
Big cities are vocal about embracing a digital transformation, but this rapid evolution doesn’t only need to happen in large communities. In fact, smaller and more rural municipalities benefit even more from tools for lean local governments because the cumulative impact is substantial as efficiencies are discovered and less time is wasted.
The right community development software can level the playing field, empowering a slim staff or even a staff of one to provide the same level and speed of service as metropolitan governments.
Cloudpermit was intentionally built to help local governments of any size access the latest and most comprehensive tools for permitting, licensing, inspections, enforcement, planning, and public works. With these streamlined processes and faster approvals, lean municipalities can deliver the service that citizens expect without breaking the budget or cutting programs.
In today’s fast-paced world, lean local governments can do more than meet expectations — they can exceed them and provide residents with what they need faster than ever. They need the right tools to do this.
With Cloudpermit, hundreds of municipalities have automated, streamlined, and improved their community development services. Learn more about what our software can do for you by booking a demo today.
