Three things to consider before starting your next government project

If there’s one thing that stays constant with technology it’s that it’s always changing. Right now, state agencies and local governments across Oklahoma are working to modernize their systems to meet the needs of their customers and new compliance requirements. And many are struggling to keep up.

If your agency or government is trying to modernize their systems, be it health or student information or even licensing and permitting, there are some important things to consider that may help bring your project in on-time and within budget.

1. Is the vendor really “turnkey”?

Many vendors who call themselves “turnkey” just want to sell product and walk away, so they’ll oversell you on the simplicity and ease of setup of a system. At LSG, we’ve walked into a number of situations where a government agency has been promised the stars by the vendor and we have to provide the reality check and detail of what it will actually take to get the system in place and matched to the organization’s needs.

True turnkey vendors will be there for every step of the process and make sure the system is fully implemented and supported.

2. What does “local” mean?

For some vendors, have a “local” presence means having a phone number on the same continent as you. If that works, great. Unfortunately, it usually doesn’t.

For example, LSG Solutions is the only Oklahoma-based service provider approved on the Statewide 116 (ITSW116) Oracle contract. This allows us to sell and service Oracle-based solutions and provide you with great, hands-on support.

3. Do they get the big picture?

If you’re working for a massive corporation, servicing thousands of clients, it’s hard to dig in and get a good idea of what’s really going on. So when a big vendor works on a project they tend to be a little myopic, focusing on only the specific items in the project plan.

As a regional, Oklahoma vendor, we’re able to work closely with your organization and figure out how the pieces we’re working on fit into the larger plan. We can give you guidance and feedback on how to best fit your new system into all the pre-existing pieces.

So when you’re planning your next project, give us a call to see if we might be a good fit.