Anthony Jamison
CivStart CEO
Trusted by local governments nationwide
Define and alignon governmentpriorities.
Turn messy problems into structured, reusable problem statements. Built for planning, budgeting, and cross-department alignment. Decide next steps so you can move forward with confidence.
How the process works
Step 1
Capture the problem
Start with a real issue, bottleneck, or priority in plain language.
Hi Sarah — thanks for making time. What's been on your radar lately in Maplewood?
Honestly, permitting. We're still mostly paper-based and the backlog is getting worse. Residents are frustrated.
That's common. Are you looking to digitize the full workflow, or is it more about the public-facing intake side?
Probably intake first — but we also need something inspectors can use in the field. And it has to work with our existing systems.
Got it. And what's your timeline looking like — is this tied to a budget cycle or council priority?
We have some ARPA funds earmarked, but they expire end of next fiscal year. So there's urgency, but we need to get it right.
Start with a real issue, bottleneck, or priority. Describe it in plain language based on resident complaints, operational challenges, or internal feedback.
Click a step to pause here. Click the active step again to play.
HOW IT WORKS
Define and align on problems and priorities,CivStart powers up your discovery.
01
Capture the problem
Describe real issues, priorities, or bottlenecks in plain language.
02
Structure and align
We turn that into a structured problem statement that captures stakeholders and success criteria so teams can act on it.
03
Plan, align, and move forward
Support alignment, planning, budgeting, and prioritization, with optional external exploration when needed.
A reusable system of record for your priorities
Each challenge becomes a structured, living artifact your team can use over time.
THE PROBLEM STATEMENT
- A clear problem definition
- Context & Stakeholders involved
- Peer government insight
- Desired outcomes, open questions, and next steps
WHAT IT DOES
- Evolves as priorities change
- Promotes cross department collaboration
- Supports planning and budget conversations
- Provides executive insights
Use when your team needs clarity before action.
Strategic plans. Budget cycles. Department alignment. Resident complaints. Operational bottlenecks. Limited resources. All of it starts here.
USE CASES
01
Strategic planning
Define priorities in a structured format before plans are finalized
02
Budget and resource alignment
Bring clearer problem definitions into budget and staffing discussions
03
Cross-department coordination
Give teams a shared understanding to work from across functions
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Our CivStart Team
CivStart is built as a government-first system, designed to help teams define and align on real problems before any external engagement. Everything starts with how governments work.
Nick Lyell
Civstart COO
Chris Canin
CivStart CTO
Tim Rahschulte
CivStart CSO
Tom Spengler
CivStart Board Member
Hillary Orr
City of Alexandria, VA
Anthony Fisher
State of CO
Bill Yock
Bellevue, WA
Lea Eriksen
City of Long Beach, CA
Michael Baskin
Montgomery County, MD
“
CivStart helped us find the right solution for a critical operations challenge — saving money while improving services for our residents
Government Innovation Leader
City Administrator