Queensland Government Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning (DSDIP) has been named a winner of the 2014 Gartner Business Process Management Excellence Awards for the Asia Pacific region.  

DSDIP, the lead state agency for land use planning in Queensland, was recognized by Gartner for organizational excellence in using technology to improve business performance and deliver business results through its innovative State Assessment and Referral Agency (SARA). SARA uses the Appian BPM platform to accelerate the assessment and approval cycle for development projects, driving process efficiency and transparency of critical project data. 

DSDIP was previously recognized by the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) as the winner of the National Process Improvement Award, as well as the Overall Planning Excellence accolade. SARA is delivering a coordinated, government-wide approach to the state's assessment of development applications that have created the most efficient and effective planning and development system in Australia.  

On July 1, 2013, DSDIP launched SARA to reorganize and streamline the state's role in the assessment of development applications covering everything from high-rise building permits to clearing vegetation. DSDIP sought out Appian to build a completely new system that would support the efficient on-line operation of SARA for the department, other state agencies, and developers.  

Appian was able to develop and deploy the system in less than three months, creating a single agency assessment point for development applications, where the state has jurisdiction and decision making authority. SARA's Appian platform provides all parties involved in the assessment process with greater visibility into project statuses and the ability to communicate to key stakeholders in real-time.  

"The SARA program is an example of how a modern Work Platform can be adopted at the state government level for enhanced business performance, client service, and organizational transparency," said Karen Astley, Regional Vice President, Asia-Pacific at Appian. "We heartily congratulate DSDIP on another well-deserved recognition for this outstanding program."  

In addition, Appian customer Crawford & Company received an Honorable Mention from Gartner for its set of business applications, Crawford Desktop + Mobility, which streamline catastrophe-related resource management and assignment of insurance adjusters to rapidly manage damage claims. Crawford & Company applications deployed on the Appian platform include Claim Portal, Claim Assignment & Scheduling (CAT Connection), Contractor Extranet (repairStream), Automated Claim Report Review/Approval, Customer Billing, and more.