06-24-2019 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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AGENDA ITEM Item No.: 12 Item Description: Accounting Software Update Date: June 24, 2019 Presenter: Ron Olson Agenda Finance Director's Finance Director Section: Report 1. Purpose. The purpose of this agenda item is to obtain council approval for an upgrade to the City's current accounting software. 2. Background. The City currently uses Caselle Clarity for its accounting software. This product was developed and marketed by Civic Systems which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the accounting firm Baker Tilly. The software was purchased in 2009 at a cost of $75,000. Overall, staff has been satisfied with both the product and the support received from Civic Systems. However, after ten years it is time to upgrade to a current version of the software. This will allow the department to use software that has been written for today's technological and security environments. The purchase cost of the connect software with the modules that the City currently utilizes would be $54,000. Civic Systems is offering an upgrade discount of $40,000 to their current customers. This reduces the cost of the upgrade to $14,000. Staff feels that this cost is very reasonable for an upgraded accounting system. If the City was to move to a completely new system, the cost for the change would be in the $75,000 to $100,000 range. Civic Systems also is moving to a model similar to other software providers with their "Software for Life" program. Our annual support costs would increase by 5.5% ($490 in the first year) each of the next five years. At that point all future upgrades will be included in our annual support fee. As part of the upgrade, staff would like to purchase two additional modules. The first is the miTime module which will allow individuals to enter hours electronically instead of using paper timesheets. This would automate the data entry portion of the payroll process while insuring that the approval process is maintained. The other module is the miAP Workflow. With this module, the Finance Department would scan invoices into the AP system and they would then be electronically distributed to departments for approval and coding. Currently paper copies of invoices are sent out for approval. At times these invoices do not make it back to finance for payment, and late payments can result. By having the files processed electronically, Finance can maintain better control of the approval process. It will also eliminate the need to scan the invoices after they are paid which staff currently does. 3. Cost. The costs for the improvements are as follows: • Upgrade to Connect $14,000 • miTime Module 6,900 • MiAP Workflow 7,500 $28,400 4. Funding. Funding for the upgrade and additional modules will be from the Improvement & Equipment Outlay fund. The annual support costs will be paid by the newly created IT Services Fund. 5. Staff Recommendation. Staff recommends approval of the purchase of the upgrade and additional modules. Prepared By: Sle Reviewed By: Approved By: ��GZ