By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – The Alabaster City Council agreed during a recent meeting to spend about $11,000 on a new software package to streamline the city’s human resources and hiring processes.

During a late January meeting, council members voted unanimously to modify an existing contract with the Civic Plus company to add an online human resources program to the services the company already provides to the city. Civic Plus currently hosts Alabaster’s municipal website and provides other IT services to the city.

According to the contract approved by the City Council, the city will pay $10,855 for one year of HR program service, and Alabaster Mayor Marty Handlon and City Manager Brian Binzer have discretion to extend the contract for additional one-year terms.

Alabaster Human Resources Director Candace Connell said the new software will streamline several processes for the department, and said the city’s fiscal year 2017 budget, which went into effect in October, included funding for the new software.

“This will include applicant tracking, performance management and online evaluations,” Connell said during a recent council work session.

“Right now, that is all done on paper, so this would be a major upgrade for our department heads,” Binzer said.