Procurement plays a key role when local governments acquire technology

When local governments plan to acquire technology, they need to follow a few key steps says Michael Maurer, a partner at the Best Best & Krieger (BB&K) law firm and a member of the firm’s Municipal Law team. He also serves as city attorney for La Habra Heights and San Jacinto, Calif.

Maurer says one best practice cities and counties should follow is to truly identify what the local agency’s current and future tech needs are. “Have a strategic plan and use procurement to implement that plan. Too often it is the other way around, with an inflexible procurement process dictating what’s possible for your agency. This leads to 21st century cities using 1990s technology.”

Maurer thinks buying technology should be a group effort. “A tech-buying team should be a collaboration between the utilizing department, the IT department and legal.” Another key player on that team is the procurement operation. And those procurement players need to be multi-skilled, Maurer believes. “On the buyer side, the most critical skill to have is cybersecurity knowledge. Government agencies are common targets for hackers and ransomware firms, and the risk increases with each new application. Just by necessity, security is most important. However, it’s also important to understand value, and this is where Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) skills are imperative.”

When they purchase technology, cities and counties need to focus on a couple of key areas, Maurer tells Co-op Solutions. “The primary issue is understanding the marketplace. Government agencies tend to prefer straightforward decision points: i.e., is the price higher or lower? Which product scored highest on a scoring matrix? But when buying technology, there are so many different products and variables that a more flexible procurement approach may lead to better value.”

Maurer says a second issue when governments buy technology, is the need to create competition and leverage as part of the buying process. “Especially when purchasing technology, government agencies tend to default to off-the-shelf solutions. But creativity and negotiating can often lead to better deals.”

Public agencies, Maurer says, need to understand any challenges, as a government entity, to implementing the newly acquired technology. “For example, a new tool might provide better data, but does it come at a cost of reduced privacy? Government agencies should be proactive in addressing these potential policy issues and in providing public outreach.”

To read the complete article, visit American City & County.