A marriage of recreation and technology: husband and wife head for the high-tech future.

These days, staff members at Pennsylvania's West Shore Recreation Commission spend their time planning promotions and creating new programs to increase participation. Administration is automated, and registration days are no longer spent racing from phone to counter, or reaching for files. Within seconds, the West Shore staff can tell customers how much space is left in a class, access notes about class descriptions, take registrations and payments, and issue professionally-printed receipts.

Director Carmen Williams, a park and recreation veteran, has driven West Shore's technology strategy since 1990. Carmen was the central force behind the agency's purchase of RecWare recreation management software in 1999-, and later, West Shore's move to Internet registration.

"When we started using technology in our daily operations, we found more time to focus on customer service, program quality, marketing and overall efficiency ... things that would drive revenue for our agency. At the same time, we gained professionalism, efficiency and accountability," explains Carmen.

In Maryland's Howard County, the Department of Recreation & Parks has also gone high-tech. With access to new software, the staff is abandoning postage and envelopes for the efficiency of electronic marketing, sending e-mail reminders and program updates instantly to customers. Registration is automated and online--the lobby no longer overflows with impatient customers on the first day of registration. Additional staff isn't needed on weekends to manually input registration data.

Says Jeff Williams, manager of Howard County's Community Services Division, "We found we weren't able to offer a consistent level of customer service. When you have excellent customer service all year round and then one day out of the year you have people standing in your lobby waiting to register, it's time for a change."

While facing technology's challenges is not unusual in the park and recreation field--most agencies make the decision to either fully automate or upgrade technology at some point during their growth--Carmen's and Jeff's story is unique.

That's because Carmen and Jeff are husband and wife, working at different agencies on the same coast, both driving the use of new technologies and sharing their experiences with each other and peers.

Sharing a Passion For Recreation

Married seven years, Carmen and Jeff live in Gettysburg, Pa., a central commute for both, with their two pugs, Afrin and Bailey. Jeff has been involved in park and recreation for nearly three decades; Carmen is approaching 21 years in the field. Both share a passion for the profession.

Both are certified park and recreation professionals and take active roles in their state associations. Jeff is past chair of NRPA's Mid-Atlantic Regional Council and currently vice president of the Maryland Recreation and Park Association. Carmen was previously president of her state association in Pennsylvania.

"We met at a NRPA programming forum and stayed in touch through networking and mutual acquaintances. It's nice to work in the same field and environment," says Carmen. "If one of us has an exhilarating or negative experience, the other person can listen and truly appreciate it."

Jeff agrees, saying, "We bounce things off each other and it makes a big difference. We've volunteered at each other's agencies, we've shared program brochures and brainstormed changes and improvements."

Carmen and Jeff also share programming ideas, from bus trips to marketing tips. Carmen explains, "We always share our final printed brochure with each other and pass it around to our staff to see if there are programs we'd like to start or ideas we can bring away. The county offered a 'Mini Monets' class, and my staff loved the name and the idea around it. It got us thinking about other marketing concepts we could create. Howard County has also started to put a few of their classes online so people can participate from home using only their computers. We are looking at that now."

For Jeff, the networking aspect has been rewarding. "Through Carmen, I've really expanded my networking contacts. Carmen has introduced me to professionals and volunteers throughout Pennsylvania, and she has made some strong contacts in Maryland."

Through their networking, Carmen and Jeff have shared advice on technology--from what's working and what's not--to organizing discussions on technology challenges. "There are so many great people in the park and recreation field, we never get tired of sharing our experiences," says Carmen. "We find that people in parks and recreation are very open to discussing their business. There isn't a feeling of competition, just a willingness to share and learn from peers."

Early Technology Adoption is Key

Serving a community that stretches across seven townships and boroughs, the West Shore staff depends on technology. "In contrast to Jeff's agency, we're a small department without internal IT support," says Carmen. "That's why choosing the best software solution was so critical. We chose RecWare because it offered specific features, was easy to install and use, and met our budget needs," says Carmen. West Shore upgraded to RecWare's hosted Internet registration solution a few years ago.

"At the same time we began using technology, we also focused on improving the quality of our programs and our efficiency," explains Carmen. "We're very proud of our excellent customer service, and proud of the staff team we've assembled.

George Cobb, president of West Shore Recreation Commission, adds, "With its unusual combination of boroughs, townships and a large school district that covers two counties, West Shore Recreation Commission has had its hands full serving over 55,000 residents. Through fantastic and caring leadership, staff, board and new technology, the job has been done. Technology has given the board members and member communities faster registration, less travel and links to other local government services."

Responsible for West Shore's finances, personnel, marketing and overall direction and leadership, Carmen supervises a staff of four full-time employees and works closely with West Shore's policy-making board. She also oversees three part-time customer service representatives, and the agency hires about 150 program instructors.

"When I interned at West Shore Rec during college, what impressed me the most was the teamwork," she says. "And that hasn't changed. You never hear someone say, 'That's not my job.' It's not about individual glory. We're all team players."

She adds, "Because 80 percent of our budget is based on program fees, our staff makes a huge difference. The type of work we do and the way we organize our agency directly affects the health of our agency."

West Shore offers three programming seasons: winter/spring, summer and fall. Winter is the busiest season, with a demand for fitness classes and indoor lifelong learning classes in music, dance and computer. West Shore also has access to the school district's natatorium so that the staff can offer aquatic programs such as water fitness, scuba lessons and lifeguard training.

A suburb of Harrisburg, the West Shore area is situated next to the Susquehanna River, which feeds the Chesapeake Bay. Harrisburg lies on one side of the river; the West Shore communities on the other. In contrast to Maryland's government system, Pennsylvania has a large number of local government units and often relies on a process of intergovernmental cooperation, in which small municipalities work together to promote organized recreation. West Shore Recreation Commission was formed through this process, initiated by the West Shore School District, which provides many of the public facilities for community recreation.

As Carmen explains, "We're organized much differently than agencies in Maryland, and we really operate very much like a small business. About 20 percent of our budget is tax-supported, while the other 80 percent comes from fees we charge participants. Our organization tries to be flexible and reacts to new information and trends fairly quickly if our budget allows."

Jeff, who is in his fourth year managing Howard County's community services, adds, "Because our governments are organized differently, the recreation agencies are very different in the way they run. That's an advantage for the two of us, because we have different experiences we can share and new perspectives we can bring to our own agencies."

Howard County Sets Industry Standard

Jeff has been involved in recreation for 29 years, all in Maryland. He supervises a career staff of 15 who provide programs that include pre-school, youth classes and programs, non-sport camp programs, facilities and aquatics, adult classes, adult trips, volunteer initiatives, therapeutic recreation and inclusion services programs, plus senior adult programs,

senior trips and special events. With a population exceeding 260,000, Howard County has 142 full-time staff members, more than 120 part-time benefited staff and numerous seasonal workers.

Howard County began using software to automate some of its operations in 1985, and moved to a fully automated system in 1999. The department recently upgraded to RecWare Safari software to offer real-time Internet registration capabilities. "Adopting technology has helped us stay progressive and provide a high standard of customer service," says Jeff. "We're very proud of our quality of parks and the variety and excellence of programs we offer."

With three seasons--fall, winter and spring/summer--the department also offers licensed child care, sports, fitness, outdoor recreation, food services/ concessions and natural resources programs. As Gary Arthur, department director, explains, "We emphasize creating a balance between active and passive leisure opportunities. You can walk in the parks or take a structured class. We offer both."

Howard County offers a financial assistance program for individuals who require a reduced fee to participate. Several NRPA efforts, including Heart N' Parks, NFL Flag Football and the 'Discover the Benefits' movement, are offered. The agency is a national leader in including people with physical, mental and emotional disabilities. Its inclusion program is offered free to participants. According to Jeff, the program goes far beyond what's legally required by the American Disabilities Act.

An NRPA National Gold Medal Award finalist four years in a row, Howard County has also earned accreditation through the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies, meeting and exceeding every quality-assessment standard.

"Earning CAPRA accreditation is tough," explains Jeff. "The accreditation process is very rigorous, and usually takes agencies five years to complete the process and prove they can meet the standards. There are detailed requirements and visitation team inspections. Howard County went through the process in just over two years. By earning accreditation, we've proven that we have progressive and sound policies and procedures in place to serve the public. This really validates our process. It's also a recognition of how we do business--an acknowledgement of our high service to the public."

Carmen adds, "The CAPRA team had arrived at Howard County to do the onsite visitation. I went along with Jeff for the 'debriefing,' meeting with staff on a Saturday, thinking I would just wait in the lobby, but Howard County's Director Gary Arthur invited me to join the meeting and observe the whole process. It was really helpful, and I was very impressed with Howard County's processes."

Leveraging Technology for Maximum Benefits

One of the first agencies in Pennsylvania to purchase RecWare, West Shore has continued to be a technology innovator. The agency made the upgrade to RecWare ProActive in May 2001, and became one of the first ProActive customers to offer Internet registration.

West Shore is using the software to automate everything from activity registration and reporting to Internet registration. Unlike many approaches to Internet registration, ProActive doesn't require equipment such as a dedicated Web server, secure credit card processing platform or staff time for data entry. With access to the software and the Internet, agencies can automatically upload program information onto the Web and provide online registration to their communities. In addition, all online and offline processes are synchronized.

"With ProActive, we don't need to worry about overbooking and calling participants to tell them the class is full," says Carmen. "We can synchronize all registrations taken online and offline to show current class openings. Our staff members can see how many spaces are available for classes, answer questions about specific programs by looking in the software's notes section or even let people know if a neighbor is also enrolled in the class."

West Shore Rec has offered online registration for six seasons, growing from just 31 programs for online registration in the summer of 2001 to offering 158 programs last winter.

"We immediately had less calls coming in on our first day of registration," Carmen says. "Typically we hire extra people for those first few days. Because we have more people using online registration each season, we may not need the additional help now. We like Internet registration because it's another convenience for our customers. Most of our customers already do telephone registration using credit cards. We found that participants like instant confirmation--they don't like to mail their registration and hear later that their class has been filled or that they can't make an alternate choice at that point. And some people don't want to rely on the mail to get it there."

Howard County also responded to early requests for Internet registration. The staff first offered a form of Internet registration in 1997. Explains Jeff, "We offered registration via the Internet, but it was not tied to a software database, so every registration had to be entered into our system manually."

Customers would e-mail their registrations to the Howard County staff, and these were downloaded, printed and entered. The positive side was the huge response--by 7:00 a.m. on the first day of registration for the 2002 spring/summer season, more than 700 registrations were sent via the Internet. The downside was the staff time required for the manual back-end processing.

Jean Jaecksch, Howard County's registration coordinator, supervises the agency's 18-member registration and marketing team. The staff responds to phone calls from participants about programs and facility rentals, and handles online, in-person, fax, mail-in and phone registrations. Says Jean, "Our early Internet registration system wasn't real time, so there was no guarantee that the participant would get the class. Someone could walk through the door and get the last spot while we were still printing a participant's e-mail. We also had to bring staff in on the weekends to process the registrations manually. We needed 24/7 live Internet registration, accuracy in reporting and faster processing of data and credit card transmission."

Howard County is using RecWare Safari to automate its activity registration system, facility scheduling and to offer real-time Internet registration. The software allows staff to use the same application for every function without opening and closing programs, meaning they can work on multiple tasks, from taking a facility reservation to checking on a customer's payment history, with the ability to quickly move between tasks. The software allows staff at multiple offices to access data and share real-time information. According to Jean, the staff's knowledge and capabilities in technology and Web site development made the transition very easy.

"Using the new software, we received 2,500 registrations online on our first day of registration and reduced the staff time needed for processing," she says. "In our first season using the system, we've already saved $2,400 in weekend staff salaries. With the real-time capability, it's easy to see what class spots are open. Customers and staff can access the information quickly and easily. The only downside is a few complaints we've received from non-Internet users because they don't have the ability to register at midnight on the first day of registration. However, we continue to offer a variety of other methods to register, affording everyone a chance to enroll."

For Jeff, the software brings new marketing opportunities. "The potential for cost-effective, targeted marketing is huge," he says. "Once customers register for classes and are in our system, we can communicate with them via e-mail, notify them of program changes or updates about programs, or even send reminders that our seasonal brochure is coming out and direct people to a particular page. We have access to a database of customer information that will help us plan programs and increase program participation."

Research Your Technology Options

Both Carmen and Jeff have found technology solutions that have worked for their agencies, but they've done their homework.

"Before we made the decision to purchase registration software, I talked to vendors at the annual NRPA Congress, spent a lot of time in the exhibit hall," Carmen says. "I looked at company history, technical staff, affordability and checked references. I had a limited budget--and was looking for value at a reasonable cost--and a solution that would meet the needs of a small agency. I also talked to colleagues who already had something in place. If you're going to pay the money for the software, the training is an important component. Most people won't sit down with the manual, and no matter how user-friendly the software is, the training is a key step to familiarize yourself with the features for maximum capability."

Jeff agrees. He says, "Allow enough time for training, and if you're going to use sophisticated software, really let the tool work for you. Every department is different in its processes, but the key is to be flexible enough to adapt. The software is powerful enough to do whatever you need, but you have to be flexible and adjust and adapt. Research is also important. Make certain you can support the technology you choose, and if you plan to host the system, it may require upgrades or other investments. If you have several remote locations, consider the expense of providing Internet access to offsite locations and check other feasible registration options for the public."

For Carmen, it's key to find a solution that meets an agency's long-term needs. "It's hard to anticipate your needs ten years down the road. That's why research and references are important. People are usually very honest about experiences with technology. And I've also found it's very easy to share experiences in the park and recreation field. Recreation agencies aren't competing with each other, so they can often be your best resource for technology information or advice on a specific solution."

John McColl manages daily communications for RecWare, which is part of The Active Network, Inc. For information about Howard County's recreation and parks programs, visit www.co.ho.md.us/ RAP/rap_homepage.htm. To find out more about West Shore Recreation Commission, visit www.westshorerec.org.