Association, Union

App Modernization Aids Large Union in Voting and Reporting Processes

A custom Convention Management System for one of the largest unions in the country was designed and developed to replace its previous, outdated predecessor. The new system provides a better UX for convention registrants, provides dynamic reporting for increased visibility and eliminates paper-based processes that compromised the accuracy of its voting process.

STRATEGIC SNAPSHOT

Challenge

Replace a dated Convention Management System for one of the largest unions in the country.

Strategy

Design and build modern, custom, data-friendly and easy-to-use Convention Management System to provide improved visibility and replace paper-driven processes.

Outcome

A scalable, flexible, cloud-based solution that improves a wide variety of tasks related to the convention, including both the voting and registration process.

“Thanks to UDig for the fantastic job they did supporting us at Convention. They were able to quickly make updates and turn around software changes needed to help make the convention run seamlessly. Truly a remarkable job.”
Director, Information Technology

Challenge

One of the largest unions in the country hosts a sizable biennial convention to hold elections and conduct union-related business. In their efforts to organize and execute this event, they rely on a custom Convention Management System. The system was dated and difficult to use. All in all, it created a negative experience for its users. Additionally, the system was an integral component of the organization’s voting process. Manual and paper-driven processes associated with the platform compromised the accuracy of its data and resulted in discrepancies when tallying ballots. Furthermore, the platform was hosted locally on a PC and required the client to provide hard drives while onsite at the convention.

Outcome

In order to complete an overhaul of the system, the team first sought to understand all processes associated with the platform and its many reports. UDig partnered closely with the union’s team to review the business rules and logic driving their processes, making recommendations for alternate approaches where appropriate. The team identified opportunities for the new platform to create efficiencies, streamline access to important information and improve the accuracy of its data.  

A new platform was designed and built from the ground up, utilizing application-level task automation and integrating with a new data warehouse which enabled enterprise data to flow to the app in real-time. Automation eliminated the need for formerly time-consuming data entry and new, dynamic reporting capability replaced nearly 70 redundant reports – providing improved visibility and replacing paper-driven processes.  

A wide variety of tasks related to the convention were drastically improved, including a faster and more seamless registration process for over 5000 guests. The organization’s complex voting process was accurate during its initial count, resolving an issue that had consistently presented challenges and created manual rework throughout the convention’s history.  

The new solution was built on modern frameworks and designed for flexibility and scalability. By leveraging the cloud, the platform can be accessed from anywhere, reducing the need for onsite hardware. The new custom convention management software improves the user experience for attendees and staff, increases accuracy with event reporting and critical voting processes, and creates valuable time-savings for the organization.  

UDig partnered with the union on the project for over 18 months, culminating in the 2018 convention. The team was onsite throughout the event to fulfill any last-minute business rule changes requested by our client and to provide support.

How We Did It

Application UI Design
Cloud Selection & Migration
Deployment Strategy
Interactive BI Application
Platform Analysis & Selection
User Experience

Tech Stack

  • Thymeleaf 
  • JQuery 
  • JOOQ
  • SSIS