The City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, improves operational efficiency and reduces operating costs.

The challenge

A Budgeting client since 2003, the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, needed help with outdated technology and disparate and shadow legacy systems compartmentalized on an outdated mainframe platform.

Honolulu selected CGI (through a rigorous RFP process) and the web-based, built-for-government CGI Advantage  ERP solution, expanding their existing Budgeting system to include Financial Management, Budgeting, Procurement, Human Resources and Payroll and Business Intelligence.

The strategy

The project kicked off in May 2006 and focused on implementing CGI Advantage Financial Management. Honolulu’s existing systems were originally implemented separately and maintained as such. So, integration and flexibility were at the top of the list. Honolulu would eliminate shadow systems and reduce redundant data entry by leveraging out-of-the-box functionality to fuel day-to-day business. 

Modernized technology was also at the top of the list. The age of the systems and the technologies used to develop them made it difficult and costly to maintain and improve them. Modern technology and configurability would establish a standard platform, reducing the cost of maintenance and minimizing customizations while remaining flexible for change.

Web-based, service-oriented architecture (SOA) opened the way for efficiency. After carefully analyzing business processes, Honolulu and CGI identified numerous ways to take advantage of automation, eliminating paper processing and cumbersome layers of approval using online forms and automated workflow. 

Working side-by-side, Honolulu and CGI began to remove those roadblocks, providing consistent communication and valuable training to encourage people to adopt more modern and efficient business methods.

The technology

As part of this project, Honolulu moved from the mainframe environment to an IBM AIX environment, establishing a standard foundation for ERP and other systems used by the departments.

In addition, the operations division successfully completed an ERP disaster recovery exercise in October 2007, a significant test of the newly architected system.

The results

The City and County of Honolulu went live with CGI Advantage Financial Management in July 2007. Today, more than 20 departments (including Environmental Services, Design and Construction, and Budget and Fiscal Services) and 5,000+ employees, from directors to staff clerks and everyone in between.  Together, they are achieving their goals and realizing numerous benefits:

  • Eliminated paper and paper approvals using online forms
  • Streamlined labor-intensive approvals, from a typical 15 levels down to 4 or 5, using automated workflow for faster approvals, enhanced control, accountability
  • Shared, real-time information and powerful reporting provide greater visibility and increased collaboration across all departments
  • Consolidated financial information into one central repository, eliminating four home-grown shadow systems and the associated costs of maintenance
  • Modernized technology, standardizing on a single platform for all IT projects moving forward, taking advantage of interoperability and vendor consolidation
  • Implemented a real-time disaster recovery plan
  • Electronic workflow and electronic document tracking, improving tracking and compliance

"We replaced a 16-year-old financial system with a new state-of-the-art ERP solution in 18 months − on time and budget."  

Gordon Bruce, former CIO and Director of the Department of Information Technology, City and County of Honolulu (2004-2012)

Continuous improvement

The City and County have started the next steps in collaboration with CGI, implementing CGI Advantage Human Resources Management, Payroll and Performance Budgeting. Integration of these modules with Financial Management will further their goal of increasing efficiency, accountability, and reporting for enterprise-wide decision-making.

For more information, please contact us at info@cgi.com or visit www.cgi.com.