CivicPlus Recreation Management

Pros

The Flexibility of the product puts it at the top of the heap for our Department's needs. The already canned Financial and Roster reports are 2nd to none. The reports capture all the information that our Finance folks want to see. Being web-based instead of seat or hardware based has been the key to our success. Being restricted by seat usage really infringed on our customer service. Now, that we are web-based, we the ability sign up anyone and at anytime and at any location.

Cons

The occasional updates sometimes interfere with our business the next day, but 99% of the time, it is fixed within the hour.

Pros

Online booking for facilities - the ease and clarity of accounting for our contractors and staff

Cons

After talking with some other cities we found what we are paying for the product is a little higher than others. We even have been told by CivicRec that we are a "premier customer" which I think they mean to say as a compliment but can feel like we are just a customer that is paying more. :(

Pros

Better value than some software packages.

Cons

It is not reliable and we have lost thousands of dollars while the software is down or having huge latency issues. (One simple POS sale can take up to 5 minutes, with a line stretching out the door 30 people deep.)

Pros

The ease of use compared to over other rec programs

Cons

There are still bugs in League Manager. We use this to schedule games at 13 baseball fields and 9 schools. We still have issues with double headers and not allowing us to manipulate the system to our needs.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing CivicPlus Recreation Management

Switched From

Reasons for Switching to CivicPlus Recreation Management

Pros

I was very pleased with the customization of the software. Having multiple facilities, amenities and rates it was a lot to set up, however the customization was well worth it. The training was informative and the trainers were great at showing examples with our facilities, not just a mock up/sample facility.
The functionality is great and very user friendly. There are multiple ways to set up a permit for example and although one method might be "preferred" by the trainers you can accomplish the same goal in at least three different ways. This is a benefit when you have multiple admins as each person may work with different set ups easier.

Cons

The set up, although very customizable was also VERY intense. We have not fully begun using all of the product features due to the complexity of setting everything up prior to launch. The most impactful functionality that I feel is missing is one related to field rentals. Our property rents 3 soccer fields and a softball field and we rent them at an hourly rate of $10/hour or a league rate of $124 for 10 consecutive weeks (2 days/week, 2 hours per day max). In the set up of these facilities there is no way to set up the $124 rate. If I set the minimum rate of $124/block with 20 units = 1 block and then I set the min units to 20 and the max units to 20, if the user doesn't select all 20 days available within the permit the system breaks down the rate/hour. So, if a user only selects 19 days out of the 20 max they can schedule the system only charges them $117 instead of the $124 I want charged.
The other function that I wish were available were a feature to provide the user with "if this - then that" questions. We have a trailer with tables and chairs and a bbq and other items for a household bbq/block party and we rent this to residents, however a lot of residents just want some of the chairs or some of the tables. It would be great if we could ask the user how many tables they are requesting. If they only need 3 of the 20 we have then we could possibly rent out the other 17 to another resident, rather then having all items unavailable if one user just takes a few

Pros

The ease of use makes for ease in training and public use.

Cons

I would like to have updates and training periodically available to stay up to date, it is currently not an option. Also, there are a lot of add-ons that I'm unable to utilize, such as Civic Plus.

Pros

Amazing project manager. Very structured implementation process. Feature rich software and great customer support after go-live.

Cons

limited capabilities on mobile version of back-office application using iOS devices (iPads and iPhones). We overcame this using Microsoft Surface Pro tablets.

Pros

It is fairly intuitive and easy to learn.

Cons

There are quite a few basic very poor database development programming problems. Starting with problems with keeping the unique identifiers - unique.

Pros

This is the most helpful/useful/coolest software available for city events/reservations/inventory/Point of Sale management and much more. I would highly recommend this software to other municipalities and even some businesses.

Cons

We have yet to find a problem or something we do not like.

Pros

CivicPlus is easy to use once you get used to the interface, and it's super easy to flow between using the web and editing the page.

Cons

There are areas where I would like greater functionality, especially in placing photos and certain other special elements.

Pros

Might be great for large cities with many facilities and programs.

Cons

main complaints are from customers are that it is too difficult to use and they don't like that so much personal information is asked upon registration. front office complaints are it has too much on the individual pages (filters, search parameters required) that it is overwhelming and no ability to send a clear and concise invoice. receipts are confusing with much unneeded information on them and no way to simplify or customize it to our needs. requests to support leads to work orders that go on a list and have yet to be touched. there is more but i don't have the time to list

Pros

While it does streamline things it does not make up for how clunk and over all bug filled the site it.

Cons

From Facility rentals to Program set up we have encountered copious amounts of issues errors and bugs that exist in the software. Tech support frequently offers work arounds instead of actual solutions to the issues with their product.

Pros

I find the software intuitive and easy to use. As we complete the event or programming entry, our catalog of programs is done. The reporting options are expansive and extremely useful for budgeting purposes, program evaluations and trends. Communicating with participants is very easy via CivicRec.

Cons

The Knowledge Base does not provide enough details at times. Sometimes it is difficult to find the appropriate guide and instructions. However, when we encounter this we will call CivicRec and receive the help needed.

Pros

They never remove features or functionality but are continuing to grow and expand their accounting, user interface, and POS management and to this day accomplishes everything we want in a recreation/POS/facility software. Accounting is also streamlined and easy to use.

A cool feature is the customer roadmap where you can submit or vote on ideas for further development. There were even times they developed new parts of the software simply because we asked. For the cost of 1% of our revenue, this service it's absolutely worth every penny!

Cons

Our only complaint when compared with other software companies comes from the lack of phone support. They do have an emergency line but generally, correspondence is done through email. Having the ability to pick up a phone and immediately talk with an expert would be nice rather than the unknown timeframe of email (although still fairly quick).

Pros

The software is customizable to support whatever needs arise. This program has improved our customer sales and customer satisfaction by allowing customers to access our calendar online and schedule and pay for reservations themselves. The reports menu is fantastic! Manage bookings, accounts receivable, refunds, and make custom reports to fit whatever your need. . The options for reporting are endless. The customer services reps are ALL amazing. friendly, well-trained and always willing to go above and beyond to provide whatever help is needed to get you the answers you need to any questions, how to preform a task, technical problems and even operator errors. (That I am famous for!) Very rarely is there system ever down. I've worked on this system for one year and have only had 2 instances that the system has been completely down, one of which I know was involving a power outage in the area of their main offices. All in all, this program as greatly helped me to perform my job functions to a much higher standard than before we began using it.

Cons

When system updates are rolled out (typically on a monthly basis, there are some glitches that effect the quality of the software for a brief period of time. As they make improvements to some areas, it may cause a small issue in other areas of their software. A simple phone call to notify them of this will usually correct the problem within minutes or at the very least make them aware of it and get their tech department working on a fix for the problem.

Pros

The software allowed us to easily transition to online registration and reservations. It's intuitive and easy for our part timers to pick up as well as the public. It also mirrors our city's website so it provides a consistent look for our end users.

Cons

Still have some kinks to work out that we find while working through things that come up. It's not as customizable to our programs as we would like (specifically with drop in programs) but we have found work arounds. The implementation/ building out was a lot of work but once it was done the software was easy to use.

Pros

CivicRec was a big leap forward from the previous system we used. What I like most about CivicRec is how efficiently it allows our agency to rollover hundreds of programs from previous sessions.

Cons

CivicRec doesnt have an interactive facilities booking calendar, which is a feature that many of our customers have asked. This calendar would allow for customers to view the availability and book sports fields and park shelters. CivicRec also lacks a robust sports leagues management module.

Pros

1. Deployment was very smooth, CivicRec provides on site and remote training for end users which is invaluable. The trainers where knowledgeable about the product and very honest.
2. Very easy to create new programs, activities, and facilities.

Cons

1. New feature requests are very slow to be developed even with alot of community backing on changes
2. Reporting features could stand to be improved. Especially financial reporting, the system does produce accurate reports. But running the wrong report will cause headaches as some reports such as a transaction report can differ significantly from a GL report.

Pros

Honestly, and I'm sorry to say this but nothing. It barely works.

Cons

1- It is unusable as a mobile web page because the left vertical menu bar with the date selection for making campsite reservations doesn't exist. 2- There is no app for this in the android play store to try to mitigate issue #1. 3- When you select "desktop site" on a mobile device, you can then select dates, but the subsequent list/grid is missing more than 100 campsites out of 236 total (Ft Desoto in Pinellas County, FL). This is not because the sites are already reserved, that's addressed with red color coding. They just simply don't exist in the list or grid views. So I tried on my desktop. Same problem- over 100 campsites missing completely. I checked multiple dates, same problem. 4- You cannot view available sites without creating a user profile and logging in.

Pros

It has made setting up leagues for athletics much easier. We are able to rollover from season to season very easily. I also set up a number of large rentals for different groups, and am able to do so very quickly.

Cons

At times trying to get a report sent to your email can be very delayed.

Pros

Ease of use. We were the first ever Rec1 customer 20+ years ago...

Cons

I like you staff, but we seem to be getting a less responsive reply. Too many hands in the cookie jar.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to CivicPlus Recreation Management

Pros

Relatively easy to use and new/updated features are always being added. Support team has been AWESOME!!!!

Cons

Wish there was a little more detailed explanation of how to do certain functions. There are some functions that operate one way on one screen and different on another screen.

Pros

As a new user of the CivicRec software, I've had LOADS of questions! Tech Support has responded promptly and completely AND followed up with me to be sure everything was clear EVERY.SINGLE.TIME. I've called! They're awesome!

Cons

There are a couple of reports I'd like to be able to get, but they are unique to our situation. And the tech support folks have always had suggestions about how we can accomplish the task in a di

Pros

Support from Zarah and Laura is professional, highly responsive (i.e. call back within an hour of request). They consistently resolve the issue to my satisfaction, and when asked for a deeper understanding of the system, they provide education on how the system "thinks." .

Cons

The software application requires the user to carefully review the actions before submitting an entry. In certain situations, I find myself reaching out to Zarah and Laura to assist with complex refund or user credit situations involving multiple transactions. In my opinion, this is not a "con" but rather the user needs to be mindful of carefully executing a transaction to provide the account holder with an accurate receipt and just as important to ensure accurate"back end" data reports.

Pros

The software is user-friendly and easy to get acclimated with. Each area that we use most often (registration for classes or events, Point of Sale transactions, calendar updating, financial reports) are all easy to understand and navigate.

Cons

There are certain occasions where we will begin to put in a rental but need to back out or cancel, and upon attempting this are told that it cannot be done because there are active transactions associated with it. This is not a major problem but more so a minor inconvenience. One other small item I've noticed is that sometimes when going to give a refund the default method is "user credit" rather than the method they paid with.