Small City Code Enforcement Pain Points
Small code enforcement teams face a unique set of challenges, though the setup isn’t the same for every municipality or agency. Some are an “army of one” handling all aspects of code enforcement on their own (and sometimes for more than one agency at a time). Some are small teams covering a large geographic area – or conversely, a small area but a dense population. Whatever the setup, small code enforcement teams likely face one or more of these common challenges.
High Case Volume with Limited Resources
Smaller population size or geographic area doesn’t generally equate to smaller case volume. Like other officers nationwide, code professionals at smaller agencies often find there is more work to do than there are hours in the day to accomplish it. Smaller teams do however often face the challenge of accomplishing that work with limited resources, whether that’s staffing, budget or both.
Discontinuity in Operations
It is not uncommon for code enforcement to be passed around between multiple departments in a municipality. Building inspections, fire, and police departments are all common “homes” for code enforcement, but teams could also operate out of city hall under an elected administration or economic development. Any time code enforcement moves between departments, there is the risk that valuable materials such as historical case information and documents will be lost in the transition – leaving new departments having to start from scratch.
Related Reading: 5 Ways to Capture Institutional Knowledge in Local Government
Decentralized Operations
Some smaller municipalities operate on a decentralized model where ordinance enforcement is piecemealed out to different departments: public works for brush and trees, water for illegal discharge, police for abandoned vehicles, and so on. Without a central home for code enforcement, it can be difficult to keep track of work, provide high-level visibility to appointed and elected leadership, as well as citizens, and not duplicate work.
Related Reading: 4 Pain Points of Decentralized Code Enforcement
Low Visibility into Work for Leadership
Another common issue with small code teams is a reduced capacity to respond to inquiries from citizens, elected officials, or municipal leadership. When case volume is high and the team is handling a lot of work, it can be a struggle to accomplish the day-to-day without the strain of extra requests on top of that. Unfortunately, low response rates to these types of requests can create dissatisfaction in leadership. Compiling reports on the team’s activity can be a great way demonstrate the team’s work and show value to leadership, but can also be a tedious, time-consuming task difficult to complete when other time constraints are present.
Overcoming Challenges for Small Code Enforcement Agencies
While these issues can feel daunting to overcome, solutions can be found by evaluating processes and priorities and giving yourself the best tools to accomplish the job.
An easy way for small code enforcement teams to level up their work is by employing a code enforcement software solution. Small teams often feel they can’t afford software and so “make do” with manual methods that rely on paper files, excel spreadsheets, and other workarounds – but making the switch can provide many benefits and is often more cost-effective than you think.
Here’s a look at the solutions that code enforcement software can provide to some of the most common challenges faced by small agencies.
Improve Case Management to Increase Efficiency
You can’t always hire more personnel, but by equipping your current staff with better tools, you may not need to. Software can improve your capacity to manage cases. With Comcate, it takes our clients an average of less than 2 minutes to create a case, make notes, generate any notices, and schedule a follow-up inspection. After switching to Comcate’s Code Enforcement Manager, the code teams for the city of Florence, KY (population: 32,000) and Dalton, GA (population: 34,000) were able to increase their case capacity by 50% and 161%, respectively.
Mitigate Information Loss with Cloud-Based Storage
Cloud-based software allows agencies to store important information like contact information, case materials, and forms in a centralized location accessible to all, which helps protect against loss in the result of turnover within the department or a reorganization within the government as a whole.
When Officer Marla Clark started at Lynn Haven, FL, she discovered that all the previous case information, which had been stored on an external hard drive, went missing after the departure of her predecessor, leaving her with no historical information to work from and no forms or letters. To ensure her agency would never face that problem again, she contacted Comcate to set up her new department with cloud-based software, where case information could be accessed by multiple people for years to come.
“It was very challenging,” Clark said. “But you know what? It worked out and now we have this amazing program, and anybody could step right in behind us and have no issues. I take pride in it, to look back at what we started with and where we are now.”
Centralize Operations to Improve Multi-Department Collaboration
If your agency operates on a decentralized model, getting everyone on the same page is vital to efficient work – and oftentimes the best way to do that is by centralizing the work in a single program accessible to multiple departments. This helps to break down barriers between departments, improve communication, and provide greater visibility into what is happening municipality-wide.
Ripon, WI discovered this benefit first-hand when they acquired Comcate to serve as a central hub for multiple departments. “With Comcate, we are able to avoid saying things like ‘Well, that’s not my problem’ or ‘You need to call this guy instead,’” said Ripon Chief of Police William Wallner. “It provides us an opportunity to be more responsive and address those concerns right away.”
Give Your Leadership the Transparency They Want
Providing leadership with the information they need can go a long way toward establishing strong relationships that can benefit your work. With customizable, one-click reporting, it’s easy to provide supervisors and elected officials with the stats that show the value of your work. With software, you can even provide officials with read-only access that allows them to look up case information themselves.
“Instead of saying, ‘Let me talk to Jake in the morning and see what’s happening,’ Comcate allows my boss, the city administrator, to pull up a case in right then and know what’s going on when he gets a call,” said Jake Hollis, Inspector with Dalton, GA Code Compliance.
Comcate: Code Enforcement Software for Small Agencies
Comcate has worked in the code enforcement industry for 20+ years. During that time, we’ve implemented our Code Enforcement Manager software at hundreds of agencies of various sizes. If your small code enforcement agency needs a tool that will help your officers work through more cases, better report to leadership, and stay on top operations, software could be a game-changer. Fill out the form below, and one of our consultants will be in touch!
Schedule a Meeting with Comcate Today!
Learn how Comcate can help make government delivery simple, and offer a modern digital experience to help you increase transparency, efficiency, and performance across your departments. If you have any questions about implementing our software, please fill out the form below or call us directly at (415) 632-1248.
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