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Enterprise App StoreCustomer Story: City of Newcastle
Customer story highlights
Transforming payroll and accounts payable with TechnologyOne OneCouncil
Eliminated 80% of manual repetitive data entry work.
Enabled real-time reporting and visibility, providing instant access to financial and workforce data.
Effective and efficient streamlined processes and real-time data insights.
Saved 12 tons of paper with automated accounts payable and 6.5 trees moving to electronic timesheets.
About City of Newcastle
City of Newcastle is the second largest local government area outside of Greater Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The Council covers an area of approximately 187km, supporting a population predicted to be more than 202,000 by 2041.
The region’s natural landscapes are among the city's greatest assets for residents and its biggest tourism drawcards. City of Newcastle is responsible for six main beaches, 79km of creeks, 88 bushland parcels and more than 98,000 street and park trees.
City of Newcastle is committed to creating a smart, liveable and sustainable global city that fosters innovation, investment and job creation.
The challenge: Manual processes slowing efficiency
With approximately 1,200 employees and over 10 office locations, the City of Newcastle’s payroll team spent hours manually handling and processing paper timesheets.
City of Newcastle’s Executive Director of Corporate Services, David Clarke, described the process as time-consuming for the team and inconvenient for staff.
“Staff would have to manually fill out timesheets, scan them in and then email them to payroll to input,” Mr. Clarke said.
“We even had people who had to drive around and collect timesheets from our various office locations and drive them to the payroll office so they could be inputted.”
“It's going to make life easier for our employees and for our customers, and give us access to all the tools, systems, and data that we need to deliver on our community strategic plan and all the objectives that our council and our community has for our city.”
Similarly, accounts payable was also a heavily paper-based and time-consuming process for staff.
City of Newcastle was looking for a way to gain full visibility across the organisation and access real-time data to track trends, something it hadn’t been able to do with the previous legacy system.
“A lot of the reporting was manual, people pulling information from left, right and centre, and then pulling it into spreadsheets or reports,” said Alicia Lopez, Chief Information Officer at City of Newcastle.
“There was no way to really have that information available immediately or as and when you needed it.”
The solution: OneCouncil by TechnologyOne
City of Newcastle recognised that to streamline processes, improve staff experience and gain improved data visibility, the Council would need to change the way it operated and digitally transform.
A customer with TechnologyOne since 2013, City of Newcastle was utilising OneCouncil, TechnologyOne’s integrated software solution purpose-built for local government.
Looking to fully realise the potential of the solution’s products and set the council up for the future, in 2022, City of Newcastle made the decision to upgrade its business processes and migrate to TechnologyOne’s new CiA platform.
Specifically, using the HRP (Human Resources & Payroll) module would allow the council to digitise employee timesheets and automate accounts payable workflows.
HRP offered:
- Cloud-based payroll management for seamless workforce administration
- Automated invoice processing reducing approval delays
- Integrated financial management with real-time reporting
- Compliance with local government regulations
“Since I started in 2022, I've really tried to pitch this as a program of work as opposed to individual projects,” Ms. Lopez said.
“We established a program team with a program manager to oversee the whole migration of works from Ci to CiA, and we've got a program control group which provides the governance over the entire TechOne project and all the different streams.”
Already in 2023, the Council’s Payroll systems migrated to CiA with Financials, Supply Chain Management, and Enterprise Budgeting soon to follow in 2024.
“It's been really good having TechnologyOne give us product demonstrations to show people what this digital transformation looks like and familiarise themselves with the technology and take away some of that element of fear," she said.
The outcome: Increased efficiency and reduced administrative burden
City of Newcastle understood that to maximise efficiency, they needed to eliminate the burden of manual data entry and automate time-consuming processes.
By moving payroll to CiA (and OneCouncil), the Council has leveraged automated workflows, mobile functionality and self-service capabilities, as well as digitised timesheets.
“It used to take our payroll team two weeks to manually input the data from all the paper-based timesheets. Then there are particular times of the year when things like a pay rise come in or leave loadings need to be paid and that’s extra processing that needs to happen,” Mr. Clarke said.
“It was a highly stressful environment, and the data entry level was so high which obviously has an impact on the team.
“Now timesheets are all digital. I’d say around 80% of that manual, repetitive data entry work will disappear, meaning our team will be able to pivot to do more value-adding work.”
Moving to digital timesheets has also improved staff and leader efficiency by automating time-consuming approval processes, minimising administration with simplified payroll accounting, reducing duplication errors, and enabling remote working with mobile functionality.
“The majority of our office-based staff are working flexibly now, so you need the systems and tools to allow that, and with CiA, you don't have to be plugged into the office to be able to do your job,” Mr. Clarke said.
“It’s much more flexible for everybody, including our outdoor workers, because people can use their own devices to complete timesheets at their own leisure rather than having to find a bit of paper, fill it out and physically return it to the correct people to get paid.”
All timesheet data now lives in one place, giving managers full visibility into their day-to-day operational costs and a real-time view of hours spent against work performed, making it easy to accurately allocate costs.
“The data in the system is legible, it's consistent, it's easier to read, interpret, approve, and then you've obviously got all the dashboard visibility, which means you can look at trends, you can look across your team which we just simply weren’t able to do with paper-based timesheets,” Mr Clarke said.
Electronic timesheets saving 6.5 trees per year
The City of Newcastle is also migrating its supply chain to CiA, aiming to realise the benefits of moving away from paper-based accounts payable processes to automated workflows for invoice processing and supplier payments.
“I don't think we've fully unpacked the potential of that yet. We're just at the starting point in our journey,” Mr. Clarke said.
It's a massively paper and time-based process and we'll see greater visibility and effectiveness across the organisation, simpler processes, and data that's hidden that we'll be able to tap into and use.”
The City of Newcastle estimates that moving from paper-based to electronic timesheets will save 6.5 trees per year, a key steppingstone to reaching its sustainability goals.
“We estimate that we’ll save about 12 tons of paper a year by moving to automated Accounts Payable, and one billion litres of water through the manufacture of the paper,” Ms. Lopez said.
By migrating to TechnologyOne’s CiA platform, the City of Newcastle is improving business efficiencies, making jobs simpler for staff, becoming a more sustainable local government, and setting themselves up for the future.
Why choose TechnologyOne?
City of Newcastle needed a trusted technology partner with expertise in local government operations. TechnologyOne was selected due to its:
- Industry-specific capabilities tailored for councils
- Seamless integration across HR, payroll, and finance
- Secure, cloud-based platform ensuring long-term scalability
- Proven success with other Australian councils
Over 73% of Australian and New Zealand residents live in a council powered by TechnologyOne, making OneCouncil the clear choice to implement City of Newcastle’s digital transformation.
Download our OneCouncil brochure here to see how it can transform your council’s operations today.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs): OneCouncil
Explore some of our most common questions about OneCouncil, HRP, local government and more below.
Contact one of our local government experts if you require further information.
What is OneCouncil?
OneCouncil is TechnologyOne’s integrated enterprise software solution designed specifically for local governments. It streamlines finance, HR, payroll, asset management, and regulatory functions into a single cloud-based system, providing a seamless experience across all council operations.
What is HRP by TechnologyOne?
HRP (Human Resources & Payroll) by TechnologyOne is a purpose-built solution that automates and simplifies workforce management, payroll processing, and compliance reporting.
It ensures accurate employee payments, eliminates manual data entry, and enhances payroll efficiency with self-service capabilities.
How does OneCouncil’s HRP module benefit councils?
OneCouncil’s HRP module enables councils to:
- Automate payroll processing, reducing errors and manual workload
- Provide employees with self-service functionality for timesheets and leave requests
- Improve compliance with payroll regulations and audit requirements
- Deliver real-time workforce insights and reporting
And more.
Can OneCouncil integrate with existing council systems?
OneCouncil is a fully integrated SaaS ERP solution that connects seamlessly with existing council operations. It provides a single source of truth across finance, HR, payroll, and procurement, eliminating the need for third-party software and ensuring real-time data accessibility.
What is SaaS+?
SaaS+ is TechnologyOne’s all-inclusive enterprise solution, providing councils with a fully managed, end-to-end digital transformation experience. Unlike traditional SaaS offerings, SaaS+ includes everything from software implementation to upgrades, support, and security, all for a single annual fee.
For more details, visit the SaaS+ information page.
Resources
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Article26 Mar 2025
Eight benefits of an integrated HR and payroll solution
Discover how an integrated HR and payroll solution can improve efficiency, ensure compliance, and enhance workforce management. Learn the key benefits today.Product
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Local Government Media release23 Dec 2024
First of its kind London Borough IT deal to deliver time and money savings
Islington Council has become the first London Borough to partner with TechnologyOne to ensure public funds go where they are needed most.Product
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Local Government Media release19 Nov 2024
TechnologyOne quadruples partnerships with UK local authorities
TechnologyOne has rapidly expanded its presence in the UK local government sector, achieving a fourfold increase in council partnerships year-on-year.
Looking for more resources?
Check out all 113 Local Government resources.
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