Note from the Editor

Welcome! In our second quarter 2010 newsletter, we proudly present MORE new features and functionality in Version 8. We tell you "What's New", introduce you to another of our staff, and highlight another of our awesome CMS customers! Read on...

We contact you, our users, periodically - just to check in, see how the software is working for YOU, and solicit your questions.

In March, we had questions for YOU! We conducted a survey to get your feedback on everything from whether YOUR questions are answered adequately, to whether and why you participate in Webinars, from what modules you're not using but would like to use, to the likelihood of your attendance at our User Conference. We asked Version 8 users how Version 8 compared to previous versions, what they liked best about Version 8, what they liked least, what new feature was most helpful to them, and asked them to rate its ease-of-use.

Our thanks to those who responded! YOUR answers will help us make CMS even better!

Please continue to let us know what YOU think of our newsletter, and to suggest articles, give us feedback on your (our) software, or volunteer for our User Spotlight!

Version 8 Features & Functionality

Import Functionality Makes It So Easy! The entire Import application from Version 7 has been completely re-written for Version 8; it's better than ever, and even easier to use!

CMS-Import comes as its own program, but works with the CMS8 software and tables.

The wizard guides you through the steps, and offers easy-to-understand choices - like where you'd like the imported records to go, and where the records you're importing are. It's even easy to file map (tell the system how the files relate to CMS tables).

You can import Access Databases; Microsoft Excel spreadsheets; Text Files and with Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) setup in your Data Sources (ODBC) Administrative Tool, the available files to import from are limited only by what drivers are installed on your machine.

Importing data using the new tools is faster, more intuitive, and easier than ever to use. Check it out!

What’s New

Asset Auto-Number Functionality! – Did you know you can set up CMS to assign ID's to each of your new assets, automatically?

This process works almost the same as the way numbers are generated for operations such as Work Orders and Work Reports. However, assets using auto-number functionality contain the prefix of the "Short Name" of the asset type; for example, using the "Signs" asset type, if the Signs short name is "SIGN", your first new ID will be something like "SIGN00001”. Create/change short names carefully; you'll want to be able to tell at a glance what kind of asset you're looking at by the prefix!

This functionality is turned off by default, but can be turned on/off for each asset type.

To turn on the auto-number functionality, access the Asset Categories screen, and select the appropriate asset type. The "Auto Number" column is blank by default. Set this to a number between 1 and 30 to turn on the auto-number functionality for this asset type. This number is the total number of characters used for the ID after the prefix. Since asset IDs are prefixed and the assets’ ID is actually text (which doesn’t sort numerically), CMS provides leading zeros so records will sort properly. For example, if you never expect to have more than 999 signs, enter a 3. When you create your first new sign record, saving to the server will name it “SIGN001”. You can always change this number later, but it won't update existing sign records; auto-numbering only works on new records.

For the asset types which you set up to be auto-numbered, the initial ID for a new record is a negative value, since CMS has the capability to function in a disconnected mode. A negative value tells the program that the ID needs to be updated with a guaranteed unique ID from the server at save time. Of course, you can still name your asset yourself - if you replace the negative value in the ID field with a non-negative value, CMS will not auto-number that record at save time - it will remain whatever you've called it.

Auto-numbering your assets is an easy way to create new assets without having to worry about what to call them - let CMS do the work for you!

Guru's Corner - Featuring Steve Charnes (Programmer/Anaylst)

Steve Charnes has been with CitiTech Systems since February 2002.

He was a Senior Programmer / Analyst until 1 ½ years ago when he moved into the Director of Operations position. In this position he oversees all of the employees' workloads and day-to-day activities as well as the management of all projects.

Steve did a tour in the United States Air Force. Then he went back to school and got his degree in Business Management. After school, he took a job in IT for a Fortune 500 company where he learned to program. Since then, he has focused on programming while continuing to learn about everything technology-related.

His favorite part of the job is helping users make the most out of their software.

User Spotlight/Case Study

City of Spokane Street Department    Twenty years ago, City of Spokane Street Department needed software to help them plan their work, log and respond to service requests, and track their costs. They selected “MMS” (Maintenance Management Software), created by Burke & Associates. Unfortunately, MMS was DOS-based and wasn’t Y2K compliant!

Luckily, Burke & Associates teamed with CitiTech Systems. CitiTech agreed to rewrite MMS, bringing it into the the new century, using FoxPro 2.6 – and called it “DSS” (Decision Support Software). The partnership ensured Burke could continue support for their customers; screens looked and behaved the same way, and even the reports were duplicated. Of course, CitiTech also added a few features to improve upon the basic model - but no one seemed to mind!

DSS's strong suit was Work Planning (which was based on the Jorgensen model). However, the Work Reporting side lacked the ability to relate actual costs to actual assets (or accounts); instead, they worked against something called “Locations”.

Spokane quickly converted to the DSS program, ensuring that on January 1st, 2000 they would be able to continue entering Service Requests and Daily Work Reports, just as they always had - without losing past data, since CitiTech Systems had seamlessly converted all their MMS records.

CitiTech supported DSS for several years, but the technology became outdated (Microsoft stopped supporting FoxPro 2.6). Eventually, DSS was “phased out” and many DSS customers (including Spokane) converted to “CMS” (CitiTech Management Software), Version 6, which was written in FoxPro 6.0. CitiTech Systems folded the Work Planning module (and the associated reports) into Version 6, and was able to offer CMS users the best of both worlds.... we already did Job Costing, Asset Management, and cost allocation through Work Reporting well; the robust Work Planning module gave users the ability to compare Planned -vs- actual activities and costs. A few aspects of DSS's Service Requests were also incorporated into our Work Order module. Former DSS users were already familiar with those modules, and most continued to use them; in addition, they gained a full-fledged Chart of Accounts, and of course Asset Management - actual cost centers like Projects, Pavement Segments, Roadway Features like Bridges, Lights, Signs, Utilities Systems, and more. Clearly, everyone won!

Spokane confidently converted from Version 6 to Version 7 upon its release, and was one of the first users to upgrade to the current version, 8. They own the Basic System, a Multi-user License, Work Order Management, Pavement Management, and Roadway Features.

We spoke to a user who was "on the front lines" during the many changeovers; Betty Peters, Clerk III for the Street Department, has worked in the Street Department for 16 years, and has not only been the administrator (and a user) of all of the different versions (beginning in MMS and ending in CMS Version 8), she has actually influenced some of those programs' functionality! Here’s what she had to say about CMS: “Changing our software to a Windows-based program seemed like a logical decision to bring us into the “current” computer world. Changing from MMS to DSS was a straightforward process that integrated our existing system and a new “enhanced” system. In the course all of the progressions through the databases and the conversions to the latest software versions of CMS, one of the most basic elements has been the capability to retain all past data. We rely on the ability to compare data in a variety of ways to enable us to produce cost projections for budget analysis. We also like CitiTech's capability to export data - that feature is used often by our Accountant.”

Betty is very proactive about getting the MOST out of CMS: for example, she has modified several reports. "I appreciate the capability of being able to customize standard reports to fit our specific needs", Betty stated.

Spokane Street department is actively involved in ensuring personnel are able to take full advantage of the software's functionality. For example, they’ve participated in past User Conferences. Here's Betty's take: "An outstanding feature of the User Conferences is the opportunity to meet other Cititech users and exchange ideas and thoughts about the system. The conferences also provide a means for CitiTech to present and gather ideas for future enhancements."

Spokane also recognizes the importance of training to maximize effectiveness in CMS, especially after an upgrade. In addition to hosting a trainer on-site after each conversion, they’ve also done something no other user has done... they sent users to CitiTech Systems Headquarters for one-on-one training sessions! Betty Peters and Danette Mitchell, a Clerk III, came prepared to ask questions, learn new functionality, and modify CMS to meet their needs. "Before arriving at CitiTech we uploaded our data to them so we could use explicit information [we had questions about]. We had issues that were resolved, and even developed a custom report during the two days we spent in Rapid City. We were both very satisfied with the quality and quantity of the training we received", said Peters.

CitiTech's approach to customer support is consistently rated "Superior" by our users. Betty agrees. "The user support is priceless!! There is always a tech available and they are always diligent in finding solutions to questions and problems."

As our users know, we encourage input and feedback, and Spokane Street Department has never been shy about voicing their opinions, concerns, and needs on everything from functionality to usability to reports!

As a few examples of Spokane’s suggestions making our software better, we added “Work Report Number” to the advanced Find in the Invoices screen, making it easy to find Invoices referencing specific Work Reports - and added the customer number to the Work Report Transaction Detail report, making it easy to query the report and display billable Work Reports. (Both great ideas!)

New fields have been added to the Invoice reports, such as Resource Class, Resource Class Name, Resource Rate, Resource Quantity, Resource Units, Resource Total, Accomplishments, and Activity Units, thanks to Spokane’s request.

Spokane continues to suggest improvements, and we continue to listen. For example, one planned future enhancement will be a change in the length of the Invoice No. field - they need more than 15 characters. Requested by Spokane, soon available free for everyone!

City of Spokane is like an old friend. They've used our software for many years, seen its many incarnations, and requested changes that have made it better for everyone. We hope they will continue to make suggestions for improvement and "keep us on our toes"; thank you, Spokane Street Department!

A "Big Picture View" - At a Glance!!

If you're one of those people who wants to see the "Big Picture" without getting mired in the details and numbers, have WE got something for YOU!

Designed for managers, the "Management Dashboard" (also known as "System Statistics") will show you system-wide information, graphically; for example, you can see how many Work Orders have been created in the last month - organized by status, management unit, date, activity, asset category, scheduled resource type, and more!

You can get system statistics on Purchase Orders, Work Orders, Work Reports, and more. You can even limit what you see to a specific status, management unit, program, activity, or other category.

Set a timeframe, click on "Show Results", and viola! Your information is displayed in grids, grouped appropriately - and pie charts, with color-coded legends!

Ever been curious about which reports are printed, how often, or how long they take to run? The Reports tab can show you.

Want to know who is currently logged in, what module they're using, and who's taken data offline to work against in the field? The "System" tab is the place to go.

Can you tell how much feature inventory you have for assets in any category? Or how many assets you have in a particular category? You can if you click on the "Basic Stats" tab!

Big-picture views of system-wide data - in grids and as pie-charts - available at the touch of a button. Check it out!