"WHY DO A NEEDS ASSESSMENT?"

Moderator - Mark Ricketson of Camp, Dresser & McKee

Overview of the topic:
As GIS becomes more popular throughout the state of Massachusetts, communities are using different methodologies for implementation.  The realities of municipal budget processes sometimes mean that towns are implementing GIS without careful planning.  Some communities have not done a needs assessment or an implementation plan before they begin their GIS installation (and have sometimes regretted it later).  This meeting presents speakers from two communities who have done needs assessments at the beginning of the implementation process, as well as from a consultant who specializes in developing needs assessments and implementation plans for municipalities.  The cities of Cambridge and Springfield have each succesfully implemented a city-wide GIS.  It took careful planning to accomplish this.  The presentations discuss why they conducted a needs assessment, the benefits they have realized, and how they are using the needs assessment in their implementation. 

Overview of Meeting - Presented by Mark Ricketson, Camp, Dresser & McKee

Why, what will it do?

• It's a plan
• You can't build something without a plan
• To develop a plan you needd information
• The goal of a needs assessment is to collect this information

• Goals for your GIS
• A focus on specifics
• What you already have (software, hardware, staff, etc.) - Don't overlook what you already have!
• Your needs
• scale and accuracy of data
• software, hardware, staff

• What can you afford?
• What are your priorities - now and later?

• It is important to develop a schedule and budget
• A GIS is an investment
• A needs assessment is a sales tool to sell ideas to the key decision makers in your community (mayor, finance committee, etc.)

Contact Information:
One Cambridge Center
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142 

Phone: (617) 621-8181
Fax: (617) 577-7501

---

Presentation by Peter Bujwid, GIS Manager, City of Cambridge, Mass.

• Organization
• Project Manager
• Users

• $$$$$
• Executive summary
• Part of feasiblity study
• One of a number of possible solutions - seen in context of an organization's strategic plan

• It's all about solutions
• Exisiting processes

• Specifically looking at implementation issues:
• potential user base
• application development
• who gets what, what
• what needs to get accomplished
• technologies
• priorities

• Understanding use of data and info
• Basis for evaluation of alternative database designs
• Basis for long-term implementation plan
• 1st contact with users

• Who
• consultant
• in-house
• one or both of the above - best (not none of the above!!)
• project manager needs to be involved
• How
• document review
• questionaires
• interviews
• meetings

• Data/information
• maintenance
• use
• flow
• responsibilities
• processes
• scales
• Interviews
• Set priorities, per dept.

• Needs assessment is a critical planning step
• For project manager a needs assessment has a number of uses, including a means of securing a bi-directional form of accountability.

• Know what users want
• Make GIS familiar to users.  User must be involved - critical to success of implementation of GIS

Contact Information:
Cambridge City Hall
Management Information Systems Department
2nd Floor
831 Mass Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139 

Phone: (617) 349-4140
Fax: (617) 349-6165 

Presentation by Linda Bischoff, Marketing Manager and Senior GIS Analyst, Applied Geographics, Inc.

Why perform a needs assessment?

• GIS requires large expenditures of money, regardless of the city or town's size
• Develop a vision of this town's GIS - not all GISes are alike
• Develop cost estimate for development (by year)
• Develop information to help "sell" the system

• What is GIS and how can it help me?
• What data do we need?
• Who will use the GIS?
• What hardware and software are needed?
• How much does it cost? **
• What are the steps we take to get there?

• Needs assessment -- "wish list"
• Implementation -- "to-do-list" (budget, personnel, management)

• Varies of amount of detail
• Mosts smaller towns' needs assessments range from $8,000 to $20,000

• Northborough, MA
• original needs assessment  updated three years later
• pilot study developed and presented at town meeting
• $400,000 for new flyover
• GIS/MIS manager hired
• Weymouth, MA
• needs assessment developed in December 1997
• funding available - priorities/needs helped earmark that money for GIS
• sharing flyover costs with Quincy, MA
• Stoneham, MA
• did needs assessment concurrently with data development
• used Boston Edison Company base
• just recently hired a GIS manager
• Walpole and Nantucket are other examples of towns that have completed needs assessments and implementation plans.

• Dedham, MA
• has issue on docket for town meeting
• may do flyover this spring
• Bedford, MA
• needed cost amounts to get through finance committee and Capital Expenditures
• implementation plan to fit anticipated Year 1 budget

• Involvement from town is critical
• interviews
• report reviews and comment
• Why use a consultant?
• they have outside perspective (not involved in town politics)
• knowledge of technology and mapping
• understands changing technology
• experience with other municipalities
• you're too busy - small study can involve 200 hours

• Perform interviews, data assessment
• Write up options
• Work with town personnel to determine scale, budget, implementation strategy

• Obtain funding
• Begin implementation

Phone: (617) 292-7125
Fax: (617) 292-7911
Email: linda@appgeo.com
Website: http://www.appgeo.com

Presentation by Linda Patrella, Planner, City of Springfield, Mass.

• Mayor appointed GIS steering committee in 1990, with the hope that 21 interested city agencies would eventually use GIS
• 1st effort at internal needs assessment, decided by planners
• 10 agencies named to steering committee, including Planning Board, Public Works & Engineering, Water Authority, MIS, Assessors
• Committee met with public officials from other communities using GIS, including Fall River, MA, Agawam, MA and Waterbury, CT.
• Prepared a report for Mayor reccommending GIS technology for multi-user environment
• ** Knew what they had in terms of software and hardware

• Purchased computerized mapping software (MapInfo) to produce thematic maps with low-end color printer for many town departments and distributed the maps at numerous town meetings, giving visibility to their fledgling GIS effort
• Attended workshops to gain further insights into GIS
• Participated in workshop in June 1992 as a case study community with the Boshe Institute
• Identified potential funding sources to implement multi-user system => 2nd needs assessment, which was done in midst of layoff of 800 city employees in one day!

• Placed GIS in the city's 5-year Capital Improvement Plan (1992-1998) => $1.4 million for everything -- hardware, software, flyover
• Identified Assessor's office as the main GIS agency to use municipal bonds to create new digital tax maps
• Received funding for 2 phases of GIS development in 1993 and 1994 (aerial photo/data conversion, purchase of hardware and software) -- totaling $74,000
• Prepaerd Request for Purchase (RFP) to obtain consultant's services to plan, develop, and implement GIS

• Selected a firm to analyze existing conditions, evaluate future needs, develop a comprehensive GIS and an implementation strategy
• Identified 5 departments for initial system development
• Described phasing to bring all users of geographic data online

• Provided a detailed road map for system implementation
• Identified specific tasks. responsible agency, timetable and organizational requirements
• Established a phased budget by task
• Gained political support

• Aerial photography RFP (have color orthophotos)
• Hardware/software RFP
• Data Conversion RFP
• Staff training plan (there is no GIS manager)
• Dedicated staffing to GIS projects (1 or 2 per department)
• Application development

• Results in the coordinated and comprehensive development of GIS
• Maximizes the use of limited resources
• Increases the number of local advocates of GIS
• Increases funding options
• Minimizes turf battles

Last Updated 4/19/2000
EOEA Disclaimer | Privacy Policy