1 CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Meeting: December 3, 2024
Subject
The Fourth Amendment to the SimpliGov agreement for Business Process Automation Software.
Recommended Actions
Authorize the City Manager to execute a Fourth Amendment with SimpliGov, for Business Process Automation Software, for a total not‐to‐exceed amount of $307,000, extending the term through March 30, 2027.
Reasons for Recommendation
In January 2022, the Innovation & Technology Department (I&T) identified a need for services to implement business process automation, specifically the ability to remotely route, review, and authorize confidential information using electronic approval.
Through an RFQ process, the SimpliGov platform emerged as it best fir for the City’s needs based on its fully integrated electronic approval functionality, role‐based permission settings to control access to sensitive data, automatic archiving, open API, and alignment with data security best practice standards. The platformʹs no‐code/low‐ code solution empowered Cupertino to rapidly and efficiently construct and deploy dependable digital forms, meeting the escalating demand.
SimpliGov’s original agreement and three subsequent amendments were authorized by the City Manager and executed by the Chief Technology Officer with an expiration date of March 30, 2026, for a total amount of $197,000. The fourth amendment is for one year of subscription costs and three years of support and development cost. As you can see in the second table, development costs were added in subsequent amendments to meet the process digitization needs of the city.
Agreement Execution
Date
Subscription Subscription
Cost (Yearly)
Support &
Developm
ent Cost
Total
Contract
Amount
Contrac
t Term
Expiratio
n Date
2 Original
Agreement
March 30,
2022
20k*3 $60,000 $30,000 $90,000 3 yrs
30-Mar-
25 First
Amendment
March 16,
2023
$12,000 $102,000
Remaini
ng 3 yrs
30-Mar-
25 Second
Amendment
July 20,
2023
$30,000 $132,000
Remaini
ng 3 yrs
30-Mar-
25 Third
Amendment
February
17, 2024
$20,000 $45,000 $197,000
Extende
d 1 yr
30-Mar-
26 Proposed 4th
Amendment Pending $20,000 $90,000 $307,000
Extende
d 1 yr
30-Mar-
27 SUBTOTALS $100,000 $207,000
Given SimpliGovʹs established success, staff proficiency in the system (acquired through extensive training and workflow development), and substantial investment in integration with Laserfiche, SharePoint, Power Apps, and PowerBI, I&T staff strongly recommend maintaining SimpliGov over exploring alternatives. Substituting SimpliGov with in‐house solutions or products from other vendors would significantly escalate costs and time expenditure, presenting a less efficient long‐term solution. This transition would necessitate recreating over 45 automated digital workflows solutions, temporarily relying on static processes during system implementation, training for a new system, and reconstructing operational processes. The associated staff training, workflow disruptions, and time lapses before implementing the new solution would incur a notable cost for the city, impeding momentum and staff efficiency.
Moreover, SimpliGov has surpassed staff expectations of a workflow automation system. Based on the cost, staff time, and the demonstrated effectiveness of the existing SimpliGov platform, staff recommends that the City Council authorize the City Manager
to execute an amendment to the existing contract to increase the not‐to‐exceed amount to $307,000. Staff will continue to evaluate the performance and value of the SimpliGov platform to determine if a competitive procurement for business process automation software would be appropriate in the future.
Sustainability Impact
SimpliGov software has reduced the volume of paper used for work management, conserving natural resources, and reducing greenhouse gases generated during the
3 production and disposal of paper. Implementation of paperless office strategies like this one is prioritized in Cupertino’s Climate Action Plan (MSW‐1).
City Work Program (CWP) Item: No
CWP Item Description: NA
Council Goal: NA
Fiscal Impact
The historical base budget for this item has been $32,000. However, due to the consistent increase in development costs exceeding this amount, we are requesting an $18,000 increase to the base budget. This adjustment would allocate $20,000 for annual subscription costs and $30,000 for annual support and development expenses.
California Environmental Quality Act
Not applicable.
_____________________________________
Prepared by: Teri Gerhardt, CGCIO, Chief Technology Officer Reviewed by: Chistopher Jensen, City Attorney
Tina Kapoor, Interim Assistant City Manager
Approved for Submission by: Pamela Wu, City Manager
Attachments:
A – Draft Fourth Amendment 22‐042
B – Third Amendment 22‐042
C – Second Amendment 22‐042
D – First Amendment 22‐042
E – Base Agreement 22‐042