Trusted by local governments nationwide

Describe the problem. Get a written Outline in under five minutes.

Grounded in your jurisdiction's public record. No account to start, no install, nothing to buy later. Free for government.

Selling to governments? See GovFit →

  • Free for governments
  • Your identity stays yours until you choose to connect
  • Backed by peer governments' experience

The City of Tempe has reviewed and approved CivStart's Clarity tool as a productivity tool.

HOW IT WORKS

From a problem in plain languageto a written Outline.

01

Clarity

Describe the problem in plain language. Clarity asks structured questions and writes your Outline.

02

Connection

See peer governments who've worked on the same problem and, only if you choose, the vendors who have.

03

Confidence

Take a plan to your manager, your council, or finance.

Your Outline is a document you own

Definition, stakeholders, open questions, next steps.

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
  • A problem statement every department can work from
  • 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.

Anthony Jamison

Anthony Jamison

CivStart CEO

Nick Lyell

Nick Lyell

Civstart COO

Chris Canin

Chris Canin

CivStart CTO

Tim Rahschulte

Tim Rahschulte

CivStart CSO

Tom Spengler

Tom Spengler

CivStart Board Member

Hillary Orr

Hillary Orr

City of Alexandria, VA

Anthony Fisher

Anthony Fisher

State of CO

Bill Yock

Bill Yock

Bellevue, WA

Lea Eriksen

Lea Eriksen

City of Long Beach, CA

“
This level of analysis is something I've never experienced before in a technology tool — it makes it so much easier to start examining a problem and define it more clearly.

Parrish Spisz

City of Tempe

Peachtree Corners, GA (pop. 45,000) used Clarity on a months-old 311 problem. Three departments contributed; the Outline scoped the work and supported a proposal to leadership.

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