Modernizing Procurement in Syracuse: Digital Transformation Done Right

When the City of Syracuse decided to overhaul and digitize its procurement system, the goal was to establish new ways of working with our vendors and present opportunities to do business with the City more broadly.

This journey wasn’t just about digitizing paper processes. It was about rethinking procurement as a strategic, responsive, and inclusive tool for good governance. And like any ambitious transformation in government, success depended less on the tool and more on the approach.

Why focus on procurement?

Public procurement is one of the most powerful levers a city has. It’s how we pave streets, build parks, invest in local businesses, and deliver supplemental services. But outdated systems and paper-based workflows had made it harder for us to act swiftly, transparently, and equitably.

After doing a fair bit of research, the API team alongside the Office of Management and Budget selected OpenGov as our platform because it aligned with our goals: enabling easier vendor access, streamlining internal approvals, creating digital records for compliance, and providing visibility into how public dollars are spent.

But event the best technology fails when it’s dropped into a rigid bureaucracy. That’s why we paired this implementation with a flexible, iterative methodology.

Bringing Agile into Government

Inspired by public interest technologists like Waldo Jaquith, on of our mentors throughout this project, we applied an agile mindset to our rollout. Government is often allergic to change, but agile methods make change safe, structured, and people-centered.

Here’s how we did it in Syracuse:

1. Started with a Vision, Not Just a Vendor
   We began by mapping out an ideal future state for procurement, one that prioritized speed, transparency, and access for all vendors as well as our Departmental staff. Before choosing a product, we documented pain points, designed ideal workflows, and aligned internally on what success would look like.

2. Conducted Sandbox Demos and Iterative Testing
   Instead of making decisions in isolation, we invited departments to participate in sandbox demonstrations of OpenGov. We tested key workflows, gathered feedback in real time, and used that insight to validate that OpenGov was the right fit not just from a technical standpoint, but for the users who would live in the system daily.

3. Built with People, Not Just for Them
   Using agile methodology, we launched in manageable phases, starting with core intake and approval forms. We collaborated closely with departments like Engineering, Public Works, and Neighborhood Development to document their current workflows and then co-designed process maps for the digital experience.

4. Created Feedback Loops and Iterated Fast
   We treated every component forms, approval, notifications, and training materials as living drafts. Our team tested new features, gave feedback, and saw their suggestions implemented quickly, reinforcing trust and ownership in the system.

5. Centered Equity and Simplicity
   We didn’t just digitize our old processes, we improved them. We simplified bid language, standardized templates, and made procurement more accessible for small and minority-owned businesses. OpenGov became a tool not just for efficiency, but for inclusion.

6. Trained Broadly, Communicated Often
   We developed hands-on trainings for staff, departments, and even elected officials, to ensure broad adoption. We offered documentation, one-on-one sessions, and small-group walkthroughs meeting people where they were, not expecting them to adapt overnight.

Final Thoughts

Government IT projects have a reputation for being bloated and behind schedule. But they don’t have to be. As Waldo Jaquith often writes, “The hard part of civic tech isn’t the tech, it’s the civics.”

By listening to our users, testing small, and staying flexible, we launched our new portal on time and on schedule, and we’re showing what’s possible when public service meets public interest design. Procurement is often seen as red tape, but in Syracuse, it’s becoming a tool for transformation!

Meet Summer Fellow, Laveena Lee

Laveena is a rising junior at Syracuse University, majoring in Policy Studies with a double minor in Italian and Information Management and Technologies. She is originally from Brooklyn, New York City, and her family now currently resides in Putnam County, New York. As a first-generation Chinese-American, Laveena was raised by her Taishanese (Hoisanwa) speaking grandparents and did not learn English until she began school. She has always had a passion for learning which made it hard for Laveena to decide on a focus for her college studies but knew that she wanted something involved with cultural studies integrated with the emerging workforce industries of the 21st century. Thus, she chose Syracuse University for its broad range of majors and minors and matriculated as an undeclared undergraduate student. In the second semester of her freshman year, she was introduced to Syracuse University’s Policy Studies program, fell in love with its core values, and admired its alumni stories. With Policy Studies, Laveena is learning how to be a professional problem solver with practical skills that can be applied to a variety of fields including the private business sector, governmental bodies, or non-profit public organizations. She views policy as the infrastructure for change, whether that is involved within the government or not. The importance of Information Management in the digital world motivated her to pursue a minor in IMT, and her personal love for Italian and its culture enabled her to pursue a minor in Italian as well. A blend of these unique skillsets, Laveena is determined to grow as an individual so she can one day give back to her community and help others just like her family had been helped. She recently returned from a semester abroad in Florence, Italy this past year, and is currently a Syracuse University Abroad Global Ambassador.

At Syracuse University, Laveena enrolled in a course on Smart Cities and Urban Policy which introduced the City of Syracuse’s What Works Cities initiatives and their iTeam to her. Subsequently, she had also enrolled in an Information Policy and Decision Making course at the iSchool, where Laveena connected with the city’s Chief Innovation & Data Officer, Nicolas Diaz, and expressed interest in the work their office had been doing. Returning from her spring semester abroad, Laveena joined the team as a summer fellow and is currently working on projects including data governance infrastructure, Syracuse’s Open Data Portal usability testing, and digitizing data for the greenhouses of the Parks Department. Unafraid to make mistakes, driven, and dedicated, she is looking forward to growing her professional network, fine-tuning her professional skills, understanding the inner workings of data governance, and practicing her data processing skills.

Outside of work, Laveena enjoys photography, listening to and studying music, weight-lifting, cooking and trying new recipes, as well as traveling the world and expanding her cultural understanding. Coming from an immigrant family in one of the biggest cities in the world, she has an interest in learning about different cultures, traditions, and languages. She speaks three dialects of Chinese: Mandarin, Cantonese, and Taishanese; Italian, and English. Her dream position would be to work in an organization that works towards addressing food insecurity and homelessness, women’s rights and empowerment, and is dedicated to giving back to the community. Laveena understands that she is privileged to have the life she does today, and strives to continue to build and use her skills to help others.