The Town of Lakeshore is a community of over 37,000 residents located in near Windsor, Ontario. As one of the first regions in the interior of Canada to be settled by people of European descent, Lakeshore has a significant number of French Canadians and is one of only three communities in Southern Ontario with a francophone population of more than 5%. Today, the region is experiencing rapid growth, with over 1,000 manufacturers in the area, as well as a several large educational institutions and major research centres.
Lakeshore was looking for a collaborative budgeting solution that would make the budget preparation process more efficient and less time-consuming. They also wanted a system that could track budget requests and approvals. Lakeshore found budgeting with linked Excel spreadsheets troublesome, as errors in one spreadsheet would carry over to other spreadsheets, and it would be difficult to find the errors and fix them. In addition, the Town was looking to integrate their operating budgeting with their capital budget and track reserves.
By purchasing the Questica Budget suite, including the Operating, Salaries, Capital and Performance modules, Lakeshore can now successfully manage their over $38 million budget with a multi-user solution designed for comprehensive budget preparation and management. With reporting, forecasting and performance management tools that provide greater insight into the budget data, Lakeshore can focus on higher-level data-driven impact for the organization and its constituents. Plus, Questica’s OpenBook transparency tool will also help Lakeshore increase their accountability and trust with citizens by presenting the Town’s budget with vivid charts, tables, infographics and information pop-ups. Armed with these best-in-class solutions, the Town of Lakeshore can now transform their budgeting process.
