Consultant tells Beauregard Parish trustees personnel, payroll and software processes need overhaul

Brandon Payne, a representative of LeanFrog Consulting Services, told the Beauregard Parish School Board that an operational review of the district’s personnel and finance departments found “inefficient data updates,” underused software and an overreliance on paper that together increase error rates and staff workload.

Payne presented a condensed version of a longer report during the board’s meeting and said LeanFrog mapped district processes — from payroll and onboarding to recordkeeping — and analyzed them for common sources of waste. “You have good software systems and you have people that are working hard to use them, but those systems are not talking well with one another,” Payne said.

The report recommended reconfiguring existing enterprise systems, standardizing how staff enter data (for example, consistent name fields), reducing paper-dependent steps and centering staff roles on functional activities rather than a flat departmental structure. Payne suggested that after configuration, targeted training would be required: “If they’re going to training and it’s not configured correctly, well, the trainer doesn’t know that,” he said.

Superintendent Holly told the board the review was requested months earlier to identify internal improvements; Payne said LeanFrog began data collection in October, conducted on-site interviews in December and has shared draft reports with district leadership. Payne said the team discovered the district runs an unusually large number of payroll runs and cited payroll frequency as a likely contributor to reimbursements and paycheck errors, recommending the district examine pay schedules as part of the corrective work.

Board members asked about Munis, the district’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, and Payne said Munis is widely used in the region but frequently misconfigured. He recommended (1) confirm the system is configured to the district’s needs, (2) then conduct role-based training, and (3) connect disparate systems via APIs or other integration methods so data flows reliably between HR, payroll and finance.

Payne outlined a timeline and next steps: LeanFrog will work with district leaders to share the full 76‑page analysis with staff, assist in mapping prioritized process changes and support a continuous‑improvement cadence so changes are reviewed periodically. He emphasized the work is operational and aimed at improving efficiency rather than staffing immediately: optimize processes first, then reassess staffing needs.

Superintendent Holly and staff signaled they will continue follow-up conversations with department leaders, and board members discussed whether to contract outside expertise to reconfigure Munis rather than rely solely on staff with multiple responsibilities.

The presentation concluded with Payne saying LeanFrog will spend additional time with department leaders to support implementation; the board did not take any formal action on the report at the meeting.

Ending: The board will receive the full LeanFrog report and continue staff-level planning; any operational or budget changes resulting from the review were not decided at the meeting and will return for further discussion or formal action as needed.