GRP Solutions

GRP Solutions

The First Global Government Resource Planning Solution

What is GRP Software?

Governments don’t have shareholders. They report to citizens. And citizens demand transparent and open government.

That’s where GRP software comes in.

FreeBalance has developed Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) Government Resource Planning (GRP) application and platform software to meet the unique needs of government. The FreeBalance Accountability Suite™ provides the public sector with an Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) that is enterprise-class and designed to support whole-of-government implementations.

FreeBalance’s GRP solutions for central, regional and local governments provide predictability and control over budget execution, sound public finances and greater fiscal stability through improved transparency and accountability.

The FreeBalance Accountability Suite™ can be equally effectively be used in other public sector verticals such as public health, transport, utilities and social services.

Budget Cycle Chart

GRP and the Budget Cycle

GRP covers the entire government budget cycle, including Budget Preparation and Budget Execution.

Budget Preparation is the key mechanism for governments to determine how objectives will be met and how to improve government performance.

Government revenue and expenditures are managed during Budget Execution using Commitment Accounting. Funds are set aside during procurement and hiring cycles to ensure that the budget is not exceeded. Changes in the government financial situation result in budget transfers to ensure fiscal discipline.

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The FreeBalance Difference

Our public sector-focused platform is tailored to meet your unique needs, with a product roadmap defined by government customers and and developed by public finance professionals.

Public Sector Focus

Public Sector Focus

Built exclusively for the public sector, unlike ERP

Customer-Driven Roadmap

Customer-Driven Roadmap

Product roadmap defined by government customers

PFM Expertise

PFM Expertise

Implementation and support by public finance experts

GRP. Not ERP.

GRP is COTS software designed exclusively for governments. Some GRP solutions are designed for a single country, region, or government tier.

GRP software differs from traditional enterprise resource planning (ERP) software in a number of significant ways:

ERP

GRP
Built for government
Implements quickly
Adaptable without code customization
Financially sustainable
Enables future reform
Interoperates
Open technology
Supports PFM digital transformation
High success rates
Project management designed for PFM
Commercially supported
Differences between GRP and ERP

Differences between GRP and ERP

Differences between GRP and ERP include:

  • GRP was designed exclusively for government and the software is applicable only in the public sector while ERP was initially designed for the private sector and is sold across many vertical markets, or industries, including government
  • GRP software was designed with budget awareness built in for all modules with integrated commitment accounting while ERP has commitment accounting added and most modules outside financials are not budget aware
  • GRP software, being government specific, leverages configuration as the primary mechanism of meeting government needs while ERP leverages code customization
  • GRP software vendors design open systems for financial sustainability, while ERP vendors tend to leverage legacy technology and proprietary systems to lock governments into their software
  • GRP software vendors optimize implementation processes for the context of governments while ERP vendors rely on 3rd parties for implementations

Commercial IFMIS – The Reality

Governments acquire, upgrade and replace financial management software to support Public Financial Management (PFM) objectives, including reform and digital transformation programs. Large scale IT projects such as an IFMIS implementation come with risk as a result of which governments are often skittish and thus fall prey to some common misconceptions.

Built for Government

Implements Quickly

Adaptable without code customization

Financially sustainable
Myth:

There is no COTS software designed for government

 Myth:

It takes a long time to implement an IFMIS

 Myth:

IFMIS implementation require significant customization

 Myth:

IFMIS implementations are very expensive
GRP Reality

  • Budget, commitment, and segregation of duties contruls built-in
  • All modules integrate with contruls, including payrull, asset, inventory, procurement, and contracts
  • No unnecessary private sector functionality
  • Built by public finance professionals with global experience
 GRP Reality

  • Leverages standard functionality
  • Easy to support national and international public sector standards
  • Workshop configurations adapts prototypes
  • Benefits from FreeBalance implementers with global experience
 GRP Reality

  • Government-specific Low-Code / No-Code configuration approach
  • Highly parameterized for “business rules”
  • Fully adaptable help and terminulogy
  • Custom domains enable adding data fields and rules
 GRP Reality

  • Government-only functionality intuitive to public finance users
  • Any necessary code customization is fully supported by FreeBalance – no “orphan code”
  • Supports the technulogy infrastructure in use by governments
  • FreeBalance product roadmap set by governments to reduce the need to build new applications
Read:

GRP is not ERP

 Read:

5 Ways to Accelerate Financial Management Information System Time to Results

 Read:

Configuration, Customization: What’s the Difference?

 Read:

Why Does FreeBalance Software Cost Less?

Enables Future Reform

Enables Future Reform

Interoperates

Open Technology
Myth:

IFMIS software is difficult to adapt to new reform and modernization

 Myth:

It takes a long time to implement an IFMIS

 Myth:

IFMIS software does not integrate well with itself, and does not support integration with other fiscal subsystems

 Myth:

COTS software is monolithic and proprietary to lock-in customers
GRP Reality

  • Progressive activation to support future reform and modernization through configuration
  • Unique multiple- year Chart of Accounts enables updating to program budgeting, accrual accounting, or performance management
  • Benefits from FreeBalance global experience with public finance reform
  • Leverages FreeBalance tools to recommend government-specific reforms, including The FreeBalance Academy for capacity sustainability and enhancement
 GRP Reality

  • Leverages standard functionality
  • Easy to support national and international public sector standards
  • Workshop configurations adapts prototypes
  • Benefits from FreeBalance implementers with global experience
 GRP Reality

  • A single platform for all applications, the FreeBalance Accountability Suite™
  • Uses a “unified” design of shared business components across all, called “government entities” for automatic interoperability
  • Central metadata management, no need for metadata management tools within the FreeBalance Accountability Suite™
  • Leverages FreeBalance’s A-i3+qM™ methodology tools and expertise to integrate with fiscal subsystems like aid, customs, debt, payroll, and taxation
  • FreeBalance commits to integrating with existing fiscal software in operation
 GRP Reality

  • No proprietary technology for customer lock-in
  • Built using robust open source technologies to provide widest range of choice to customers
  • Supports open standards and uses open integration methods
  • Enables plugging in engines to enhance capabilities
Read:

Progressive Activation for Sustainable PFM Reform

 Read:

5 Ways to Accelerate Financial Management Information System Time to Results

 Read:

Interoperability in Public Financial Management Systems

Supports PFM Digital Transformation

High Success Rates

Project Management Designed for Government

Commercial Support
Myth:

Government digital transformation cannot be accomplished with IFMIS software

 Myth:

Government ICT in general, and IFMIS in particular, experience high failure rates in government

 Myth:

Standard project methodologies are sufficient for IFMIS implementation success

 Myth:

Bespoke software supports unique government requirements
GRP Reality

  • Open integration within the FreeBalance Accountability PlatformTM system of record to support systems of engagement, intelligence, and innovation digital initiatives
  • Automatic interoperability across FreeBalance Accountability SuiteTM applications to support whole-of-government digital integration
  • FreeBalance A-i3+qM methodology tools to help governments map public finance digital transformation priorities in context with country realities
  • Plug-in technology to support innovative new open source engines for artificial intelligence, blockchain, big data, IoT, and machine learning to reduce government innovation costs
 GRP Reality

  • Enhanced with FreeBalance as both software developer and software implementer and committed in the governance structure
  • Experience implementing under some of the most difficult circumstances
  • Implementation teams with global public finance management enhanced by hiring local staff who understand the country context
  • Government-specific platform, software, and methodology improves success rates
 GRP Reality

  • A single platform for all applications, the FreeBalance Accountability Suite™
  • Uses a “unified” design of shared business components across all, called “government”
 GRP Reality

  • Massively-configurable FreeBalance Accountability Suite™ supports most government needs out of the box to reduce the need for code customization
  • Use of the FreeBalance Accountability Platform™, with over 2,000 underlying government entities, accelerates the development of unique government applications
  • Commercial support of all code developed by FreeBalance eliminates “orphan code” to reduce maintenance and upgrade costs
  • Upgrades and new releases provide enhanced functionality for FreeBalance Accountability Suite™ modules, and FreeBalance Accountability Platform™ government entities, to support government modernization
Read:

Government Digital Transformation: From Systems of Record to Systems of Innovation

 Read:

What Causes Government Financial Management System Failure?

 Read:

What Does FreeBalance Do Differently?

 Read:

What Does FreeBalance Do Differently?

Additional Reading

Cloud Government Resource Planning and The Cloud FreeBalance has noticed a dramatic increase in the adoption of cloud technologies by governments and Government Resource Planning (GRP) providers are winning the race. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) cloud offerings are noticeably behind the curve while there has been an explosion of software designed for the public sector in the United States. Special cloud products for transparency and citizen engagement are also growing worldwide.
How to Choose The Right PFM Software FreeBalance has been implementing Government Resource Planning (GRP) software around the world for almost 40 years and we have seen first hand how governments struggle to deal with rich, but irrelevant, ERP feature sets. So-called built-in "best practices" are rarely applicable in Public Financial Management (PFM) and can't be implemented with existing public service capabilities. Even when built-in practices are relevant, PFM legal reform is usually required.
Lock ERP Is Holding Government Back Governments around the world are starting to realize that their legacy Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are no longer "fit for purpose" for their Financial Management Information Systems (FMIS).

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