The Shire of Murray, approximately 80km south of Perth in Western Australia, expects to double its population over the next decade. As a result, the Shire of Murray Council is thinking ahead, with the installation of performance management software Interplan, which is usually utilised by larger Councils.
Interplan, the creation of CAM Management Solutions (CAMMS), is designed to create a performance culture across organisations, driving strategic, corporate, business and service level planning with budgets and performance measures. Chief Executive Officer Dean Unsworth says, "As the Shire continues to grow, it is important that Councillors and staff are ready for the expansion. Interplan will ensure we are well and truly prepared.
"The software links in with our Strategic Community Plan, ensuring each key performance indicator is allocated to a staff member and accounted for, so we can be confident that every task that needs to be completed will be completed. Ultimately, our Strategic Plan is not just a token gesture, but is a living, breathing document of achievements.
"We believe Interplan will create more meaningful performance appraisals for our staff, and will give us a more comprehensive picture on how we are going as an organisation, allowing us to constantly improve and make the smartest possible decisions based on facts," Mr Unsworth said.
The CAMMS software also includes a mechanism to undertake an environmental analysis across departments, and perform trend analysis on key performance indicator data over time. Mr Unsworth says, "I believe one of the most useful ways a local government can use the Interplan system is to generate performance reports for Council to consider, so Councillors and the community are aware of exactly where projects are at and their expected completion date."