innovationIOWA Weekly 1.30.20

Johnston residents keeping an eye on the city’s finances have a new tool to simplify the process.

The city’s public Open Finance dashboard publishes the city’s entire budget and spending line items — down to the vendor and check amount, Finance/Human Resources Director Teresa Rotschafer said.

Starting a few years ago, City Council members had asked Rotschafer how the city’s finance department could show greater budget transparency. Johnston has an operating budget of $59.19 million. Rotschafer asked finance clerk Brett Klein to explore what the city could do.

"We previewed several products that are out there," Rotschafer said. "The issue for staff was that the compatibility with our current finance software would have required staff time and more involvement than I wanted to have take place. Our staff is lean here in the finance department, and the ability to convert the information into another software program and get it uploaded was going to take, in my opinion, too much time and effort."

Two years ago they learned the city’s existing software provider Tyler Technologies purchased one of those products by Socrata, and it sparked interest for the staff to try again, Klein said. Johnston was among the first cities to launch the Open Finance portal with Tyler Technologies; Dubuque has also launched the same tool by Socrata, called Open Expenses Dubuque.

"We’re here to serve and we don’t mind getting calls and questions, but the public are reluctant to [call]. They always say, ‘I don’t want to bother you,’" Klein said. "It’s hard for a layperson who isn’t intimately familiar with municipal finance and budgeting to sort through that. Here, it’s just like your checkbook. … Here’s your expenses, here’s your revenues."

Johnston had previously published the budget handbook online, but "it probably wasn’t very user-friendly to a layman," Rotschafer said. "When you go into Open Finance now, you can just see the police department and click on it. … It’s clear, it’s searchable and they can drill down into what they want to see."

The department had a soft launch of the platform about six months ago and went public in mid-December. The platform now updates the city’s budget once a week, which includes a view of the revenue budget, staff wages and detailed breakdowns on varied categories such as economic development, emergency departments and utilities services.

"We thought all along that this should be a product for citizens and vendors — maybe vendors will look and see what other vendors were paid. It just hasn’t been around long enough yet for us to know exactly all of its capabilities or all of the options we have available to us," Rotschafer said.

"We want people to know that we really are an open book," she added.

Now accepting nominations for InnovationIOWA awards

Help us recognize innovation happening across Iowa as we seek nominations to honor both an organization and an individual for their accomplishments. Awards will be presented at innovationIOWA Magazine's unveiling on May 21, 2020.

Submit a nomination for:

Corteva Agriscience innovationLEADER
Honors an organization or company for their originality, leadership, and impact on their company, state and local economy, and/or the general public through innovative concepts, processes and/or products. Nominees will be judged on the following:

1. Originality of innovation(s): Is this a completely new concept/idea/process or the reimagining of an existing one? Was it developed independently or in cooperation with others?
2. Impact of the innovation(s): Did this innovation meet an unmet need? How has it affected a specific industry and/or the public at large? If internal, what impact has it had on processes and efficiencies within the organization?
3. Culture of innovation: Does the company promote an atmosphere conducive to innovation? Has the company consistently been seen as a leader in its field when it comes to innovation?
4. Commercial impact of innovation(s): Has the innovation gone to market? What financial evidence or market acceptance information does the innovation have to support new value for the end user? What is the quantifiable evidence of success?

Iowa State University Ivy College of Business innovationENTREPRENEUR
Honors an individual for their originality, leadership and impact on their company, state and local economy, and/or the general public through innovative concepts, processes and/or products. Nominees will be judged on the following:

1. Originality and impact of innovation: What are the major accomplishments of this individual? What innovative idea, product, or process, or series of innovations, is he or she best known for? Was it something brand new or an improvement on an existing product, process, etc?
2. Impact of innovation: What impact did that innovation have on processes and efficiencies of the person’s organization, his or her industry or the public at large? Is it for commercial release? If so, please detail the commercial success of the innovation.
3. Culture of innovation: Does this individual have a proven track record of innovative ideas and promoting innovation in others? Is the person seen as a leader in his or her field? Does he or she have a history of pushing limits and thinking outside the box?
4. Personal/professional reputation: Does the individual have a reputation for high personal and professional ethics? Is the person looked to as a leader or mentor in his or her field?

Nominations due by Feb. 14, 2020.

Submit a nomination

IN THE NEWS

Nonprofit deadline extended for dsmHack applications
dsmHack will accept nonprofit applications for the 2020 Des Moines Charity Hack until Feb. 7, the charity announced. This year’s hack will be held March 5-7 at the Curate event space in Des Moines. Launched in 2014, dsmHack has brought together more than 500 developers and designers from across Iowa in a 48-hour marathon weekend to build technological solutions for 61 local nonprofit organizations. More than $1 million of in-kind service has been provided to nonprofits through projects such as volunteer management, website work, donor data management and web applications. There is no cost for nonprofit participation in the event. Nonprofits interested in applying may submit an application at dsmhack.org; participating organizations will be publicly announced at the kickoff on March 5.

ISU Startup Factory announces eighth cohort
The Iowa State University Startup Factory announced its eighth cohort of entrepreneurs entering the program. Eleven teams joined the program, with an evening kickoff held Jan. 16 at the ISU Alumni Center. More than 100 individuals attended the reception, which also honored past and graduating cohort members. This year’s cohort startups are: AeroSeeder LLC, AgTech Innovations Labs, BrainSoft, Citizen Scientist, the FarmHand App, FoMA, Legov Systems Group LLC, Quantum Control Works, seedBiome, TdVib and WashWright. Program graduates Haber Technologies Inc., ETALYC and Gross-Wen Technologies Inc. were honored for cohort achievements; volunteers Jeff Paxhia, Carol Kersey and Craig Forney were also honored for contributions to the ISU Startup Factory program.

Nominations open for Iowa Biotech Leader Award
Nominations are open through Feb. 7 for the 2020 Iowa Biotech Leader Award, to be presented March 11 at the annual Partnering for Growth conference, hosted by the Iowa Biotechnology Association. The award is presented to an individual who demonstrates leadership, innovation and advocacy in advancing Iowa’s biotechnology industry. Partnering for Growth will be held at the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny on March 10-11.

Student tech scholarships open by Paragon IT foundation
High school seniors planning to pursue a technology-related degree within Iowa can submit applications until March 31 for scholarships by Paragon IT Professionals, the company announced. Ten students will receive $1,000 to pursue a tech education. Scholarships are supported by the Paragon IT Leadership Scholarship Foundation 501(c)(3), which hosts an annual charity golf tournament and has granted more than $100,000 to students over the past six years. Applications are available at www.paragonitpros.com/post/scholarships.

ONE GOOD TECH READ
In Kenya, new digital IDs may exclude millions

NEW YORK TIMES: In an ambitious new initiative, the Kenyan government is planning to assign each citizen a unique identification number that will be required to go to school, get health care and housing, register to vote, get married and obtain a driver’s license, bank account and even a mobile phone number. In preparation, nearly 40 million Kenyans have already had their fingerprints and faces scanned by a new biometric system that ramped up last spring. But millions of ethnic, racial and religious minorities — like Ahmed Khalil Kafe, who is a Kenyan of Nubian descent — are running into obstacles and facing additional scrutiny when they apply for the documents required to get a biometric ID. Many have faced outright rejection.

IN OTHER NEWS: SmileDirectClub says it fixes smiles, but may shush you if it doesn’t (NEW YORK TIMES); The Twitter accounts for multiple NFL teams were compromised Monday (CNBC); FedEx warns people about new text message scam using company's name (THE HILL).

BUSINESS RECORD CALENDAR
UPCOMING EVENTS

Feb. 13: Power Breakfast: Business of nonprofits and corporate giving
The Greater Des Moines business community has a long history of philanthropic giving, volunteerism and cause-oriented work. Now there are more worthy causes to support. This panel will discuss some of the ongoing opportunities and challenges our nonprofits are facing in seeking funding. We will also take a look at how area businesses are reshaping their social responsibility efforts and what it means for the community at large.
WHERE: Des Moines Embassy Club, 7-9 a.m.
Read more

Feb. 20: Accelerate Series: The psychology of success: Rewire your approach to life
Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and start being excited about what could go right by rewiring your approach to life. Join Jim Summers, who is the Max S. Wortman Jr. professor and an associate professor of management at Iowa State University’s Ivy College of Business, to learn how to take your thinking to the next level.
WHERE: West Des Moines Chamber, 4-6 p.m.
Read more

View our full calendar to see the latest curated business and community events, or suggest an event.