GOGov / Permitting

Brief

GOGov is a SaaS company catering to local governments. Across our four product modules, we serve millions of citizens in over 350 local jurisdictions. I primarily contributed to our latest module, GOPermitting, designing it from scratch. Additionally, I’ve spearheaded significant enhancements to our GONotify module.

My primary role was as the lead product designer, but I also dedicated significant time to front-end work, specifically with React/TypeScript. I’ve built core features for the frontend, collaborating directly with backend developers to interface with APIs.

TIME
3+ years

MY ROLE
Product design
Strategy
Research

GoNotify

GONotify enables governments to craft messages and distribute them to citizens through our mobile app, email subscribers, and social media channels. This simple software has been a hit, generating over $400k in annual recurring revenue (ARR).

The right side of the screen displays a live preview of the message being crafted, in both mobile and desktop formats. I take pride in having conceived the idea, designed it, and executed the entire front-end development.

GoPermitting

GOPermitting is our most ambitious project. Citizens can apply for permits, engage with reviewers, arrange inspections, and make payments online. Meanwhile, cities have the ability to establish review workflows, dynamically calculate fees, generate reports, and much more.

Step 1

Citizens can browse and submit applications online. Our mission is to make this often daunting experience as simple and pleasant as possible.

Step 2

Citizens submit forms through a wizard. Here, they are able to add any specific contractors. In the staff portal, we connect the submitted contractors with registered contractor accounts.

Step 3

Viewing the summary, where citizens can review their submission, handle any additional fees (often added later in the process), access relevant documents, track their application’s progress, and communicate with reviewers.

The staff portal had to offer extensive configurability. Within it, staff members can construct intricate views by selecting columns from any form field in their system. For instance, agencies specializing in dog licenses might need to include a column for the dog’s color or apply filters based on breed.

A staff member examining the location of a rental submission. By integrating with an agency’s GIS system, we can access comprehensive parcel data within the town. Citizens can then choose a parcel or location for building or rental permits (as illustrated by “51 William Street”), allowing us to dynamically adjust fees based on factors like zoning, construction year, lot area, and so on. Additionally, staff members can review the location’s history and any flags to ensure there are no unresolved issues.

The ‘campaign manager’ where staff can automate and track all of their annual permit & license renewals.

Result:

GONotify has been our most profitable module, generating a large number of deals on a relatively small amount of work to get it up and running.

GOPermitting is our most advanced module, and is on track to generate the most revenue by the end of this year.

dave.