Development Application Assessments using AI Solutions

Local Government

The Challenge

Australian councils in the state of New South Wales faced a state mandate to cut Development Application (DA) assessment times from 150+ days to 112 days – with no additional resources. For our client, high volumes of applicant queries and incomplete submissions were driving manual rework and processing delays, and existing processes could not scale to meet the new regulatory targets.

Our Approach

Mapped the end-to-end DA process to identify the highest-impact pain points constraining assessment speed.
Deployed an AI-powered applicant support solution to reduce inbound queries and lift submission quality at the front door
Built and embedded an AI-guided submission workflow to validate applications before lodgement, cutting incomplete submissions and downstream rework

Results & Impact

Hrs/Wk/Employee unlocked

32%

Reduction in requests

100%

Target met

Outcomes

By automating routine steps in the process, the team unlocked 5 hours per week per employee, freeing staff to focus on higher-value assessment work instead of manual tasks. This shift also drove a 32% reduction in requests for further information, cutting down on rework and processing delays. As a result, the organization successfully hit its target of a 112-day turnaround time, achieving this milestone without adding any headcount.

Done in conjunction with our portfolio partner Enterprise AI

Read the Press Release