Granicus Introduces New Federal Government Meeting Services

Granicus, an award-winning cloud computing provider for government, introduced its new Federal Meeting Services to help agencies across all branches of federal government achieve significant transparency and citizen participation results. The new services

San Francisco(14 Sep 2010)

Today, Granicus, an award-winning cloud computing provider for government, introduced its new Federal Meeting Services to help agencies across all branches of federal government achieve significant transparency and citizen participation results. The new services will enable federal agencies to take advantage of cloud computing, webcasting, and other new media tools to align with heightened technology standards set by President Obama’s Open Government Directive.

Nine federal agencies and advisory committees already rely on Granicus to create an unprecedented level of openness and accountability in meetings regulated under open meeting laws such as the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Some of these agencies include the National Science Foundation, U.S. Access Board, National Archives and Records Administration, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Standards and Technologies, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Tomorrow, Granicus is hosting an Open Government Roundtable in Washington D.C. It’s a full day event bringing together all levels of government and industry thought leaders on transparency and open meetings to discuss changes in policy and technology and to learn best practices. Featured speakers are: Craig Fifer, Deputy Director of Communications and E-Government Manager, City of Alexandria, Robert Flaak, Director, Committee Management Secretariat of the U.S. General Services Administration, Steve Ressler, Founder and President of GovLoop.com, John Wonderlich, Policy Director of the Sunlight Foundation, and Tom Spengler, CEO and Co-Founder of Granicus, Inc.

“The GSA is working diligently to help federal government decision makers take open government to the next level,” said Flaak. “Webcasting open meetings and using tools that allow citizens to conveniently access, research, share, and participate in government decision-making and deliberations whenever and wherever they want, is a critical next step to expanding transparency. We believe services like Granicus’ are fundamental to helping the federal government achieve this goal.”

Granicus solutions are proven and trusted through 10+ years of experience. To date, over 750 local, state, and federal government agencies are achieving measurable increases in transparency, citizen participation, and public meeting efficiency with Granicus technology. Over the past two years, the company has worked with nearly 20 federal agencies to create Federal Meeting Services that combine best practices in open meetings and citizen participation with end-to-end services designed exclusively for federal government. These services include:

•    Live Event Webcasting
•    Keyword Searchable Archives
•    On-Premise Video Production
•    Closed Captioning Services
•    Agenda and Minutes Automation
•    Official Transcripts of Proceedings 
•    Seamless Website Integration
•    Citizen Feedback and Analysis

 “We’ve had the exciting opportunity to work with a number of agencies and advisory committees to shape our federal meeting services. Our goal was to remove any obstacles preventing federal agencies from getting open meetings online in the most transparent and accessible formats for citizens.” said Thao Hill, VP of Enterprise Solutions, Granicus Inc. “We provide government with more than just a webcast, we deliver a comprehensive, integrated, and searchable public record of open government data that’s incredibly useful to the public.”

About Granicus
Granicus, Inc. is the leading government cloud computing provider for transparency, efficiency, and citizen participation. It offers the first cloud platform and product suites designed specifically to help government agencies establish meaningful connections with citizens. It has been recognized the past three years for being one of the fastest growing company private companies in the U.S. and Silicon Valley by Deloitte LLP and Inc. Magazine.