A computerized accounting system purchased two years ago could save taxpayers? money, if only it were used.
Independence Township Trustee Charles Dunn wants to know why it isn’t.
On Tues. Aug 21 the Independence Township Board discussed implementing ‘point of sale? software that was purchased by the board in 2005.
‘We purchased an asset and were not utilizing it and it’s costing us money,? said Dunn.
According to finance director Susan Hendricks the cash receipt software cost $9,500. ‘We are using that $10,000 piece of software, but we are not using it to the full potential,? she said.
Treasurer Jim Wenger said he, along with Dave Wagner and Hendricks had a long discussion earlier in the day, about how fully implementing the software can take place, advantages and benefits of doing so.
‘The bottom line is we are going to have to make sure it’s going to work. We are not going to just throw up our hands and say, ‘let’s do it? without taking a look at a test model and walking it through with a very systematic progression and make sure we are covering what we need to cover,? said Wenger. ‘It’s not something that is going to happen overnight.?
Dunn said he was confused why the pros and cons had to be looked at, because the software was purchased by the board.
‘We pay these auditors tens of thousands of dollars to look at what we’re doing right and what we’re doing wrong. A third party has come to us and said, ‘Township board there is something that you’re not doing that you should be doing.??
Hendricks recommended the building department be used as a trial for the system before implementing it in all departments. She said she has never been involved in the cash collection procedures at the township.
‘What I don’t want to do is take an old paper method and make it computerized,? she said. ‘I need to learn what the different departments are doing, how they are doing things, why they are doing it and what we really need in our system and then we need to put in a system that works for us.?
Dunn suggested bringing in someone from the software company to show the township how to operate it.
Hendricks said Vadim, the municipal software vender, will not recommend how to implement the product.
‘They will tell you, ‘this is what our system can do. You (the) client decide how to make that work for you,?? she said. ‘We have a pretty good handle on what the system can do. We need to decide how to appropriately implement it for Independence Township.?
Hendricks said she needs to understand cash receiving between the building department and the treasurer’s office, before she is ready to make final recommendations.
Dunn said if the township doesn’t get the system up and running right away then they are leaving ‘money on the table.?
‘If we are redundant in our cash receipts, when you have a computerized system to build a database on clients we are not generating files, were not having people have to go through those files. I’m sure one of the major selling points of buying this system was to eliminate duplicate (and) triplicate work.?
Dunn assured the board, when the system is put in, the township will save labor costs plus there won’t be a ‘bunch of paper floating around the township.?
Trustee Dan Travis said the board approved a purchase based on the recommendation of a department and management. Perhaps the township bought the software because the auditors said they should, but maybe purchased it before they were ready.
‘It seems to me if you are going to go back on an implement for a one-department basis, perhaps we weren’t prepared to go this route,? he said.
Trustee Dan Kelly was glad Hendricks had a meeting with Wagner and Wenger to start getting things moving forward. Kelly suggested Hendricks report back to the board in two months to give an update, even if nothing has been done.
‘I think Mr. Dunn does raise a good point, the auditors did bring it up at the audit. And whether or not there is actual savings, I suspect we bought it because we believed it would have savings, so we should just keep moving forward with it.?
According to Trustee Larry Rosso, the priority must be the budget.
‘We cannot afford the difficulties we had, or the time table we had last year for this budget season. That has to be the ultimate priority in my way of thinking, so whatever we do here with the Vadim system and the pilot team and crew, the building department and so forth cannot detract from the two people we have to lead us in the adaptation of this,? said Rosso.
Rosso also said there is probably a lot of ’employee resistance,? employees who don’t want to go through the training process of learning a computerized system.
Wagner said he didn’t think they purchased the software with the intent of not implementing it. ‘If there are employees out there that don’t want a working system, then that’s a shame,? he said.
Dunn stressed the importance of getting the software on the agenda.
‘Let’s start discussing it, because if we don’t get it down on paper (and) we don’t put a timeline on it, it’s not going to get done,? he said.
At a prior meeting Dunn suggested the parks and recreation department put its brochure on the computer and not mail them out.
‘I want to get us into the 21st century computer-wise,? he said.
Wagner ended the discussion saying, ‘We know where the board is coming from, and we will move along.?