ClearGov Launches ClearPlans, A Strategic Planning Solution For Public Agencies

The new cloud-based tool from the public sector technology solutions provider allows agencies to create, execute, and manage any type of plan.

ClearGov, the leading provider of public technology and budget cycle management solutions, launched its newest product, ClearPlans, on May 9th, 2023.

ClearPlans is a cloud-based software platform that allows public agencies to create, execute, and manage any type of plan. The software creates a website-based strategic plan that is automatically updated, mobile-friendly, and downloadable as a PDF for those who need a printed document.

ClearPlans provides modern tools to help internal stakeholders collaborate on and easily update their progress on the plan’s action items. Powerful dashboards summarize the activity to give both internal stakeholders and the community at large the insight to understand exactly where the plan is on track or needs some additional focus. This information is available real-time via easy-to-understand web-based metrics and graphs.

Initial participants in the launch will be ClearGov customers who have selected to participate in the ClearPlans Beta Program. The company has always valued user-input and this testing period allows them to continue to add features and functionality based on actual user feedback.

“It was an easy decision for us to be involved with the initial startup of ClearPlans. We feel very strongly about strategic planning. It’s a vital part of the operating budget and functioning of a city. Our council just went through a strategic planning session, and we knew that being offered the opportunity to be a part of ClearPlans would be absolutely wonderful. We feel strongly about reviewing the products and offering feedback to help ClearGov make it the best product possible,” said Krystle Hightower, Budget & Purchasing Manager of Flowery Branch, GA

During the initial launch period, users will be able to build and maintain the core functions of a plan. This includes creating plans with all three core levels (Focus Areas, Goals, and Action Items), attaching KPIs and documents to all levels, and updating progress and status on each Action Item. The participants’ feedback will play a critical role in finalizing the end product. Participants will receive regular updates about the status of the solution and invitations to review the latest features.

For local governments and public agencies considering other planning software, ClearPlans’ key differentiators include a direct connection to budget data, workflow/task management, dashboard reporting, the ability to download the plan to a PDF, and best practice area recommendations.

In 2020, the GFOA made significant changes to its budget award program criteria, specifically around strategic goals, planning, and performance measures. Combined with the continued focus on transparency and accountability in government budgeting, there has been a notable increase in public agencies seeking solutions to support their strategic planning processes.

“We built ClearPlans to help local governments and public agencies not only easily build and communicate their plans, but also to actually execute on their goals and objectives,” said Chris Bullock, CEO & Co-Founder of ClearGov. “This new product transforms documents like strategic plans from static PDFs into web-based, mobile-enabled dashboards that offer real-time insight into the progress of the plan and connects the plans to their budget in an entirely new and unique way.”

Key features of ClearPlans include:

• Comprehensive Dashboard – Powerful visualizations and filters allow stakeholders to quickly assess the progress of all, some, or individual goals. The ClearPlan dashboard also shows future action items and due dates.
• Plan Manager – Based on market best practices, ClearPlans’ 3-level planning framework enables you to easily create and maintain clear, powerful plans.
• Flexible Collaboration – Assign team members to one or more parts of your plan, establish update frequency and send reminders to contributors automatically.
• Track Progress – Go beyond building a plan. ClearPlans makes it easy to monitor and update progress with percent complete, comments, and KPIs.
• Budget Allocation – Connect your plan to specific accounts to determine the impact, identify gaps, and communicate clearly with constituents.
• Optimized Publication – ClearPlans’ flexible publishing capabilities deliver professional-looking websites, complete with mobile & ADA optimizations, and PDF documents. Constituents can also request email alerts for any changes.

ClearGov is the preferred budgeting solution for the National Association of Counties (NACo) and ClearPlans is the latest product to be endorsed by the organization. “Our mission at NACo FSC is to deliver sustainable, cost-saving, and value-added solutions to counties. ClearGov’s commitment to modernizing the government budgeting process with affordable, easy-to-use software has saved counties countless hours by streamlining and automating the annual budgeting process. Strategic planning is a key part of this process, so we are pleased to endorse ClearPlans as the preferred strategic planning solution for our members,” said Paul Terragno- NACo Financial Services Center Managing Director

ClearGov® is the leading provider of public sector technology solutions to help local organizations of every size simplify their budgeting and licensing processes. ClearGov’s Budget Cycle Management solution helps local governments modernize and streamline their entire budgeting process. Its ClearForms platform modernizes any paper or PDF-based workflow process. ClearGov solutions are utilized successfully by more than 900 agencies and are powerful and affordable enough to support local governments of every size. For more information, visit www.cleargov.com.