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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-12-143 - Neighbourhood Association Online RegistrationREPORT TO:Community and Infrastructure Services Committee DATE OF MEETING: October 15, 2012 SUBMITTED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director, Community Programs and Services, (519) 741-2687 PREPARED BY: Debbie Campbell, Manager, Community Resource Centres, (519) 741-3400 ext 3382 DATE OF REPORT: October 9, 2012 REPORT NO.: CSD – 12 - 143 SUBJECT: On-Line Neighbourhood Association Program Registration RECOMMENDATION: For information only BACKGROUND: In June 2010, city staff began a pilot project with 4 neighbourhood associations (Forest Heights Community Association, Downtown Neighbourhood Alliance, Kingsdale Neighbourhood Association and Williamsburg Community Association) to provide residents with the opportunity to register for neighbourhood association (NA) programs online. Highlights of the pilot project include: a total of 558 programs (355 child/youth; 203 adult) involving 4,737 participants (2505 child/youth; 2232 adults) were offered by the participating neighbourhood associations. This represented a significant increase from the previous year. 37% of registrations took place on-line; 61% of all payments were made using a credit card, which is in line with City of Kitchener pools who have utilized on-line registration for many years. Feedback from program participants consistently indicated satisfaction with the convenience of on-line registration and payment options. Neighbourhood Association boards identified the value of the program and financial reports, an increase in participants and expanded market, convenience, and satisfaction at meeting the request of participants for on-line and payment options. Based on the success of that pilot project, on June 18, 2012, staff brought forward a report to the Community and Infrastructure Services Committee that recommended making online NA program registration permanent. During discussion of staff’s report on this topic, two delegations representing 5 NAs spoke about the success of the pilot project and requested the continuation and expansion of the project to other interested NAs. On June 25, 2012, City Council approved making online NA program registration permanent and expanding the number of NAs utilizing the service, while: (1) not incurring additional staffing costs, and (2) accelerating the timeframe to expand the program to other interested NAs. ë ó ï REPORT: Program Costs: In staff’s June 18, 2012 report to the Community and Infrastructure Services Committee, a number of costs were identified to implement online NA program registration. These costs include: credit and debit card feeds; CLASS maintenance fees; and staff wages. Based on experience during the pilot project for this program, City staff was recommending (with the approval of the project team) the City retain approximately 14% of the revenues collected by participating NAs to cover the costs identified above. Of that 14%, approximately 10% were to be earmarked to cover city staffing costs. Following City Council’s direction of June 25, 2012, to not incur additional staffing costs while expanding online program registration to other NAs, staff has explored options and are confident the program can be implemented within existing budgets, and without having to recover staffing related costs from the NAs. Efficiencies in Community Centre budget management will include maximizing staff support with part-time employees, and adjusting daily and seasonal staff schedules to maximize service provision while demonstrating fiscal responsibility. Community Centre staff has traditionally provided registration support to NAs through manual systems. The function of registration support is a benefit to both NAs and the general public, and supports community engagement and participation. As such, it is entirely appropriate for City staff to continue to support NA program registration – both manually and online – through existing Community Centre budgets. Participating NAs will be expected to cover some additional costs of the program related to credit/debt card fees and CLASS maintenance fees (4% of their program revenues). Expansion Timeline: There are currently 4 NAs that provide residents with the opportunity to register for their programs online (Forest Heights Community Association, Downtown Neighbourhood Alliance, Kingsdale Neighbourhood Association and Williamsburg Community Association). Work has already begun to identify other NAs that have the interest and capability to implement online program registration in 2013. Community Resource Centre staff are currently in the process of sharing information with NAs across the city who provide programming, to assist them in determining their potential interest in the project. A presentation will be made by an NA volunteer already participating in the project at the Neighbourhood Association Summit in November to allow for further information sharing. Those NAs who identify an interest in online program registration and have the capacity to undertake the significant start-up work required in 2013, will be invited to attend a demonstration of the system in early December. If the NA Executive Board commits to participation following that demonstration, the NA will be made a member of the project committee and work will begin to implement online program registration for their NA. Should staff receive interest from more than 2-3 NAs, prioritization will be based on the program complexities and adaptations required; capacity and readiness of NA volunteersto participate, and impact on other projects to fast track this initiative. The project committee (made up of NA volunteers and City staff from across the Corporation) will continue to work diligently to expand the number of NAs providing online program registration as quickly as possible. However, the process of bringing a NA’s programs online is complex, labour intensive (for both NA volunteers and City staff) and requires significant planning and due diligence to be successful. In addition, the collaborative nature of this program ë ó î – between the City and the NAs – requires additional time in order to ensure understanding and agreement on issues that may arise between the partners. Based on our successful experience with the pilot project, staff anticipates Country Hills Recreation Association and 1-2 other, yet to be determined, NAs can be brought online effectively in 2013. If those 2-3 NAs are brought fully online and made operational prior to the end of 2013, staff will look to expand the program to additional NAs within the year. Staff did consider a more aggressive timeline to expand online program registration, however, based on our experience with the pilot project, we are not recommending a faster approach for the following reasons: Complexity 1.: No two NAs are completely alike and neither are the programs they offer. The length of time required to plan for and implement online NA program registration is due in large part to the complexity and uniqueness of the programs offered by each of our NAs and the need to identify how those programs will be managed through the CLASS system. With each new NA, a process is undertaken to clearly identify their specific programs and needs and then customize CLASS to meet those needs. This work can be quite complex when dealing with issues such as: fee assistance, volunteer pre-registration privileges, and packaging of several different programs for a price discount. NA Volunteer Capacity: 2. In order to be successful, online NA program registration requires significant front-end planning to be done by the participating NA volunteers. Each participating NA will be required to identify a project lead (a volunteer) that will have the capacity to attend a series of trainings, followed by monthly project team meetings with representatives from other participating NAs and city staff. Additionally, the volunteer lead will be expected to frequently share information with their NA Executive Boards and work collaboratively with the project team to ensure timelines and project requirements are met. Each new participating NA will be required to provide a detailed profile of their current programs and operations, identifying the uniqueness and volume of programs, registrations, revenue, process for fee assistance, multiple day programs, volunteer incentives and year- long programs. This information, which will need to be developed by NA volunteers, will be used for planning and implementation purposes. Additionally, NA volunteers from the pilot project have agreed to act as mentors to the new NA volunteers joining the project. This mentorship role will be vital to maintaining the values, systems and shared decision making that have been forged through the pilot project. However, it also creates a responsibility to demonstrate a balanced approach in assessing realistic goals for project growth while supporting existing volunteers in their roles both with their own NAs and the project. Given all of this work by the NA will be completed by volunteers, setting timelines that are too aggressive would not respect the time constraints of one of the major project partners. City Staff Capacity: 3. Planning for and implementing online NA program registration requires the involvement of city staff from a number of areas across the corporation, including: Community Resource Centres, Service Coordination and Improvement, Finance and Corporate Communications. Community Centre staff are responsible for facilitating and coordinating the process of systems change with NAs; front-line staff are required to learn new skills and knowledge to support the online registration processes; program information is input and monitored by the CLASS administrator; Corporate Communications supports the additional program information in Leisure, NA newsletters and on the website; and ë ó í Finance provides support to reconcile accounts, and assist in resolving challenges and discrepancies. As work is completed to expand the number of NAs using online program registration, it is important staff in each of these areas has the capacity to manage this service enhancement. If project growth is maintained at a manageable rate, current staff resources will support a steady, ongoing expansion. However, hurried, uncontrolled growth will result in an inability of existing staff to effectively support the NAs, and will jeopardize the success of the project as a whole. Considering the factors listed above, a multi-year implementation plan to expand online NA program registration across the city is anticipated and recommended in order to be successful. ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN: This initiative achieves progress on the following strategic plan foundations: Leadership and Engagement – this open, transparent collaboration has harnessed the skills, knowledge and expertise of volunteers and staff to respond to the expressed wishes of the community Diversity – this initiative supports an enhanced level of accessibility for program registration and payment options for community members Capitalize on Existing Investments – this initiative leverages existing technological assets to provide a new service to Neighbourhood Associations Enhance Customer Service – Providing on-line registration and increased payment options responds to community requests, and provides enhanced services to Neighbourhood Association volunteers. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: Participating NAs will be expected to cover some additional costs of the program related to credit card and CLASS maintenance fees. These costs currently reflect approximately 4% of program revenue; however, this will be reviewed and adjusted over time as required. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: The online NA program registration project was initiated in response to participant and NA requests. The four participating neighbourhood associations have been active participants in every step of the process and project implementation. The process of developing the project together has resulted in increased dialogue and understanding between neighbourhood association volunteers and staff, and an expressed sense of community. At the end of the day, this collaborative approach has been the key to the successful implementation of online program registration. CONCLUSION: The pilot project for online NA program registration is complete, and has been a highly successful collaboration. Planning for Phase 2 (expansion to other NAs) is now well underway, with consideration to managing capacity considerations, as well as budget efficiency. Over the ë ó ì next number of years, staff will take a thoughtful and planned approach to expanding online program registration to NAs across the city who have expressed an interest and demonstrated the capability to engage in the project. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Michael May, Deputy CAO Community Services ë ó ë