Syracuse finance committee reviews FoxPoint draft IT report and probes payroll modernization invoices

The Syracuse City Finance Committee met to review a draft report from FoxPoint Solutions examining the city’s IT applications and the payroll modernization project, and to discuss related procurement, invoices and cybersecurity concerns.

The draft, delivered to council and administration the day before the meeting, assesses current software use across departments, offers recommendations on procurement and project oversight, and identifies an estimated roughly $420,000 in potential annual savings from software consolidation, according to committee discussion. Corporation counsel advised the council not to release the draft publicly until FoxPoint briefs the council and finalizes the report; the administration said it is “comfortable releasing the report” once the council is ready.

Why it matters: The review touches on a multi‑year payroll modernization effort funded in part by a Financial Restructuring Board (FRB) grant and additional city funds. Committee members pressed administration staff on deliverables, disputed or outstanding invoices, and whether procurement procedures were followed — issues that affect city spending, vendor accountability and how future technology projects will be governed.

City officials said the draft confirms Syracuse’s portfolio of roughly 100 applications is in line with a city of its size, and that departments are generally using the software they pay for. “It obviously confirms our understanding that our software applications really match the size of the city that we have,” said Corey Dunham, chief administrative officer. He said the administration values the consultant’s suggestions and will review them for potential savings and efficiencies.

Committee members focused repeated questions on the payroll modernization project. The committee recorded three previously announced go‑live dates in discussion: July 1, 2024; Oct. 7, 2024; and Jan. 1, 2025. City officials said some functions — notably issuing paper paychecks for roughly half the workforce at the Oct. 7 date — were not supported by the system then, and that contributed to the decision not to launch on that date. Dunham said the administration concluded it was not ready to go live at that time.

Agenda participants also addressed project costs and invoicing. Committee members cited an initial $2,000,000 FRB grant earmarked for payroll modernization; Dunham said that grant required no city match. The committee discussed additional city spending referenced in the meeting transcript (described variously as “an additional $4.02” and as “over 7.2”), and officials said they are reviewing invoices and contract records to determine whether billed work matches delivered, and how much, if any, was of no operational value. “That’s what we’re trying to determine,” Dunham said of potential cost overruns.

On procurement and oversight, Corporation Counsel (identified in the meeting only as Sue) said her office reviewed procurement for the payroll work and concluded procurement policy had been followed for the contracts she examined; she offered to brief the council in an attorney‑client session on her findings. Committee members noted that waivers of competitive bidding were brought to and approved by the council in prior years for some vendor work, while other engagements were awarded through RFPs. Officials confirmed Cherry Road won an earlier RFP to implement timekeeping, and later engagements involved waivers and further agreements.

The administration said it has issued a new RFP for an implementation partner for the payroll and human resources information system and expects the competitive process to close in early July; council members will sit on the vendor selection committee and the chosen vendor will be presented to council for contract approval.

FoxPoint recommended organizational changes to reduce duplication and improve oversight. The draft suggests creating a chief technology officer (CTO) to oversee both IT and the Analytics, Performance and Innovation department (API), to act as a gatekeeper for future application purchases and to report periodically to the common council. Dunham said the mayor proposed a similar IT reorganization in the budget and that the administration intends to pursue a CTO position subject to available funds.

Cybersecurity and access control also drew attention. Nicolas Diaz, chief innovation and data officer for the API team, said the city uses Microsoft Intune to monitor hardware and a Microsoft single sign‑on solution to restrict application access tied to employees’ Microsoft credentials; those accounts are supposed to be disabled on an employee’s last day. Diaz said API and IT coordinate security work despite limited resources. One councillor cautioned against publicly detailing software vulnerabilities in an open meeting before redactions are finalized, arguing that specifics could pose security risks.

Next steps described in the meeting: FoxPoint plans to brief council early next week and finalize the report; corporation counsel offered a privileged briefing for council on legal questions; the administration will continue its invoice analysis and expects to bring RFP selection results and any contract approvals to council. The meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn.