Two councils, one small and the other growing rapidly, have found a common solution to their differing IT challenges.
The Town of Kwinana, now on the population threshold of being recognised as a City, was faced with the need to upgrade its hardware infrastructure, which would require a significant capital investment and even then this would only partially solve its IT challenges.
Similarly the relatively small Shire of Esperance was confronted with a number of IT issues that were threatening to seriously compromise the Shire’s IT viability.
After consideration of a number of alternatives both councils opted for a managed services contract with Civica.
Civica’s managed services contract removed the requirement for the Town of Kwinana to commit to a substantial capital outlay and replaced it with a solution with predetermined IT costs over a five year period.
The contract included all maintenance and replacement of hardware, while all software would be maintained and updated with patching managed by Civica
Errol Lawrence, Director Corporate and Commercial Services for the Town of Kwinana, contends Council is now well positioned to set the benchmark for IT management within the Local Government sector in Western Australia.
“Our aim is to be a leader in the Local Government IT space and, by adopting managed services, I believe we are well placed to achieve this goal,” Errol Lawrenec said.
“Council is constantly searching for new ways to generate extra revenue, improve efficiencies and work smarter, not longer. All of these synergies aligned very well with the managed services option.
“The decision to implement managed services will enable the Town to refocus its IT team to concentrate on the front end of Council operations.
“This will allow us to provide a better service to our 300 council officers, a move which will ultimately benefit our 13,000 plus rate payers.”
He said that additional benefits to accrue from managed services include maximising the use and integration of the current IT systems and the opportunity to promote the effective and innovative use of software.
“The capacity to provide more training services for users and improved management of IT assets, were also to our advantage,” he said.
Kwinana recently became the first council in Western Australia to implement Telstra’s Internet Protocol Telephony (TIPT), a fully managed VOIP telephone system using cloud technology, to meet both its short and long term telecommunication requirements.
This system has proved to be highly effective. Significantly, Civica’s managed services are complementary to the TIPT system.
The situation facing Darren Kennedy, Executive Manager Corporate Services for the Shire of Esperance, was the loss of senior IT personnel and challenges in attracting quality replacements.
Further there was the need to implement an affordable disaster recovery capability as well as guarantee business continuity.
“We are a very small Shire located in one of Western Australia’s most remote destinations and one of the greatest challenges I face is how to manage our ever changing IT infrastructure and software applications, all of which revolve around experienced IT technicians,” Darren Kennedy said.
“The five year managed services contract with Civica, was by far the best option for us.
“It eliminated the major risk and uncertainty around our Shire’s data storage and subsequent accessibility. We are now comfortable in the knowledge that our records can be retrieved instantly from any location.
“After adopting Civica’s managed services, we are very confident that the Shire’s IT infrastructure and business applications are being managed by highly reputable and experienced IT professionals who are familiar with how councils run and the issues confronting them.”
He said that the Shire of Esperance is currently experiencing a growth phase.
“We see the upgrading and ultra professional management of our IT infrastructure as pivotal to our successful expansion,” he said.
Both the Town of Kwinana and the Shire of Esperance had existing associations with Civica.
The former, invested in Civica’s Authority Local Government application in 2005, so its move to managed services was a logical progression.
Similarly the Shire of Esperance used Civica’s Authority software applications for over 12 years and the transition to managed services complemented that established relationship.
Located 40 kilometres south of Perth, Kwinana is in the midst of a major growth phase with a multi billion dollar investment in infrastructure that is transforming it into a vibrant cosmopolitan center.
Esperance is located on Australia’s south east coast and is approximately 725 kilometres from Perth. It is one of the most modern and progressive country communities found anywhere in Australia.
*Copy supplied by Civica
