UMass Collins Center presents tech and efficiency review; town pursues phased upgrades and customer-request system

Brianna Summer, a consultant with the Collins Center at UMass Boston, presented a technology and efficiency review to the Hubbardston Select Board on Feb. 3, summarizing findings from a Community Compact Best Practice grant and outlining a sequence of phased upgrades the town is implementing or seeking funds to complete.

The review, performed between early 2024 and late 2024, audited the town’s permitting and forms, legislative-management workflows, customer-service and request tracking, human-resources and accounting processes, website, and document-management practices. Summer said the project was designed to identify “where there might be room for improvement” and to leave money in the grant for implementation support.

Key recommendations and current work - E-permitting and forms: The consultants recommended expanding the online permitting portal to add missing application types, consolidate scattered PDFs and paper forms, and provide staff training. Summer said adding forms will create a “one-stop shop” for applicants. - Legislative management and website: The town is migrating to an upgraded municipal website (CivicPlus) that will include enhanced legislative-management tools, granular permissions for content publishing, and subscriber notifications. Summer and staff said the upgrade is already in…