The Permit Center has implemented an automated Land Management System (LMS), centrally administered yet distributed to all City staff via a previously existing network. The LMS combines a text-based application with a document imaging program to supply critical property information.

Currently the LMS supports the following data:

• Assessor parcel attributes and geo-districts
• Local contractors, architects, engineers, developers, etc.

• Development projects, including:
  
  Planning and discretionary action case tracking
  Plan review routing and permit issuance

• Inspection scheduling and results, and C of O processes
• Occupancy and code compliance inspections
• Mitigation/Condition monitoring, and complaint tracking
• City-wide filming activity

The Problem

Prior to LMS implementation, there was no available centralized parcel information source within the City. Agencies throughout the City created their own individual address-based applications, causing massive duplication of data and effort, as well as loss of information integrity. Existing methods of gathering the necessary information for Permit Center processing and decision-making were highly labor-intensive and carried little guarantee of consistency; only the Building Division utilized computer software for applications processing.

A study was conducted with Permit Center staff and management in mid-1992; it identified the following requirements on which system evaluation and selection were based:

• Maximum information retrieval capability, or the ability to extract and examine information in a variety of ways;
• Increased flexibility in design to accommodate emerging information needs without the necessity of costly and time-consuming vendor modifications;
• More proactive vendor involvement (preferably with local representation), regularly scheduled system upgrades, and a broad base of fellow system users from which to draw suggestions and support;
• Data base structures compatible with other applications and capable of being accessed on a real-time basis;
• A proven track in integration with complementary applications, such as Geographic Information System products.

Change

Over a period of nine months, ending September 1994, the LMS was implemented and automated Building Division data converted. System administration provides periodic updates of parcel data from the Assessor, and staff maintains other system data through normal work processes.

Customer requests for property information may now be satisfied by any City staff member. [Soon Permit Center customers will be offered hands-on display-only LMS access from terminals located in the Permit Center lobby or in Pasadena library branches.] Upon receiving an application for service, Permit Center staff enter pertinent information onto the LMS, where the system will then calculate fees and process payments; case information may be entered to the LMS at any time and become available to all system users concurrently. The result is an "electronic filing cabinet," available to all City staff, of accurate, real-time Pasadena property information.

Document Imaging brought forth speed and efficiency of document retrieval of records previously on Microfilm or in paper form. Lost records, due to errors in filing, searching in multiple places causing time delays, and inacessability is no longer a problem. A local area network was set up, with stations strategically placed for optimal efficiency. Documents were scanned and indexed by activity number which coincided with the LMS system.  We have achieved our goal to provide a search function in the LMS system which can "hotkey" into the Document Imaging system,  and have all documents related to the search appear.

Costs

Approximate capital outlay for hardware, software and vendor implementation assistance were:

• Text-based application: $ 490,000
• Document imaging application: $ 419,000 + the cost of conversion of documents.

Additional expenditures were incurred in staff costs during system implementation, including full-time project management.

Customer Satisfaction

Potential system users participated in all phases of LMS evaluation, selection, customization and implementation. The oversight committee formed for this purpose, consisting of line staff representatives from all functional areas of system use, continues to meet monthly to review LMS effectiveness, to develop new system solutions, and to supervise and regulate continual system enhancement. While the primary customers of the LMS are Permit Center staff, overlap and communication between the LMS Oversight Committee and other focus groups allows system design input which ensures compatibility with the public’s and other agencies’ information needs as well.

Strategy

In order to increase productivity, you must redesign the work before introducing automation. Your major investment is not in technological tools but in workflow and input/output analysis. Before developing specifications for computer-related purchases, you must first define your current products and the procedures which generate them, and then identify which products are truly appropriate to your mission; only then should you examine alternative re-engineering solutions, each of which may involve technology as an enabling tool. Productivity is gained through streamlining; technology will only amplify strengths (or weaknesses) in the process.

Innovations

The LMS implemented for the Permit Center is based on a vision of shared property information which eliminates duplicative efforts and time-consuming data searches, and allows a more efficient and effective approach to information management. As the majority of City-generated data is parcel- or address-based, the entire organization could logically benefit from an informational structure based on property references; the Permit Center administration is working to include additional City Departments and external agencies.

Obstacles

In addition to the resistance to change cited in the discussion on the Permit Center as a whole, and a general reluctance to surrender control of isolated pockets of data, various problems unique to technology surfaced during LMS design and creation. These may be divided into several categories: software and/or hardware limitations; unfamiliarity with acquired technology specifications; and unanticipated system administration costs.

As with any software package, certain pre-programmed system functions are based on assumptions which are not true for Pasadena, and compensatory procedural adjustments must be developed, documented, and imparted to staff. Conversely, the customizable elements of the application require constant upkeep in the dynamic environment of the Permit Center, of course, supplementary staff training must accompany any system changes. The existence of multiple vendors presents conflicts in system repair and assistance, and special vendor-supplied training was required to allow in-house maintenance of new hardware, software and database platforms.

Specific to the Document Imaging project, system costs, (hardware and software) can be identified and easily budgeted for, conversion costs are much more difficult to plan. Beware of the misconception that hardware and software make a document imaging system. If there is no data on the system, all you have is a framework, nothing more. The cost of conversion is not just in the scanning and indexing, but in the preparation, which can cost thousands of hours in staff time. Due to the complexity of some files, it takes a staff member with specific knowledge to sort through and identify pertinent documents which need to be scanned, it can not be left to the vendor, nor to an untrained employee, and is therefore fairly costly in both wages and workplans.

Each of the above technology-related issues can be alleviated or at least lessened through proper preparation and education during the system analysis and design phase. More specific information regarding the technology products adopted by Pasadena’s Permit Center is available upon request by calling our Department Information Analyst at 744-6646.