Infor Public Sector Software Improves Government Agencies’ Delivery of Public Services and Information to Citizens

Infor Public Sector today announced the general availability of an enhanced version of Hansen, a government-specific software solution used by more than 450 government agencies at the state, provincial and local level. The latest version, Hansen 8.2, provides greater access to relevant information across the entire agency, simplifies activities to increase user productivity, and adds several new features that improve citizen interaction. Hansen 8.2 also provides more robust billing capabilities across departments, adding new functionalities and streamlining account set up and rules.

In recent years, citizens have put heavy pressure on governments to increase accountability, transparency, efficiency, and citizen service, fueling agencies to turn to enterprise software applications like Hansen to meet citizen demands. Additionally, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009's requirements for transparency further compel agencies to seek solutions that keep them compliant with federal regulations as well as improve their operations and level of service.

Many city, state, county, and special district governments continue to rely on a combination of out-of-date systems and manual processes to conduct the business of government. These systems create inefficient silos across the agency, increasing risk of errors due to the reliance on manual data entry and duplication of work between and within departments. The use of outdated systems slows processes and inhibits the ability to meet federal and regulatory requirements. Hansen 8.2, unlike many solutions available, stores asset, permitting and billing information in a single database, further reducing IT overhead and providing the reliability necessary for city wide deployment.

"Government agencies are under increasing pressure to identify cost saving measures and maintain and improve citizen services," said Bob Benstead, VP Strategic Planning, Infor Public Sector. "Infor understands these issues, and the enhancements in Hansen 8.2 focus on ease of use, increasing productivity and improving the processes of billing and collecting revenue."

Infor Hansen 8.2 delivers new and improved functionality across several key areas, from citizen interaction to asset management and code enforcement.

Several enhancements have been made to functionality that manages Citizen Relationship and Interaction including the ability to consolidate several record fields into a single view, a new configuration template editor that allows users to quickly design automated correspondences such as bills and service request notifications, capability to add relational information for contacts, and a new tool to quickly create ad hoc reports based on any of the information contained in the Hansen database.
Hansen 8.2 Asset Management features a new Incident Tracking capability that allows agencies to record and process information on incidents such as traffic accidents or natural disasters from within the system without the need for a third party application. For instance, if a traffic accident occurs, a user can create an incident report that includes location, persons involved, vehicle information, and the conditions at the time of the accident. This can then be associated with assets from the inventory and linked to work orders, service requests, asset inspections, and code enforcement cases, enabling agencies to track the progress and costs associated with the incident.
The Work Management interface has been redesigned to simplify the work process and make information more accessible. In addition, agencies can schedule multiple employees, vehicles or equipment units in batches for a work order instead of one at a time, making processes simpler and more efficient.
New enhancements to Hansen 8.2's Community Development and Regulation (CDR) program speed user processes. A new start application page combines several tabs into a single window for immediate access to account information. The Fee Library now centralizes the definition of fees for all applications, licenses, or case types within the CDR application. Rather than defining fees separately for each application, users can now assign them in a single location. This reduces data entry errors, speeds the solution's deployment and decreases the total cost of ownership.
Citizens have responded to these challenging times by demanding that their government agencies spend taxpayer dollars as efficiently as possible and increase the level of citizen service and transparency," said Jack Frost, Deputy Director & Chief Code Enforcement, Municipality of Anchorage. "Hansen software has helped us streamline our operations and communicate with citizens since 2006; over the years, the software has continued to be enhanced enabling us to do an even better job of meeting our citizens' demands. We anticipate the improvements to our systems that will result from the new features and functionality included in Hansen 8.2."

"Infor Public Sector develops innovative solutions that focus on the specific needs of government agencies, while other software providers try to force private sector applications onto public entities, which can lead to longer and more costly deployments and over-complication of functionality due to the customization that may be required," Benstead added.