23 Local governments across the USA are accelerating efforts to modernise permitting and licensing as they respond to growth, housing demand and resource constraints. Accela continues to support this shift, helping agencies move core planning and construction workflows to the cloud to improve efficiency and transparency. In early 2026, the city of Cleveland highlighted its modernisation efforts as part of a broader initiative to support development and improve service delivery. As detailed in Accela’s blog and podcast, Cleveland processes nearly $2 billion in construction permitting annually, with some projects requiring coordination across up to 16 departments. Cleveland has moved permitting and plan review to the cloud, implemented a citywide electronic plan review system and introduced real-time dashboards to improve accountability and coordination. These changes are designed to create a more transparent, predictable and business-friendly experience for residents, developers and staff. Across the market, agencies are now looking beyond digitisation toward automation and AI embedded within core platforms. Rather than standalone tools, these capabilities are being applied to streamline reviews, improve consistency and surface issues earlier – while maintaining human oversight – helping governments continuously improve how services are delivered. Read the full blog post to find out how Accela has helped the city of Cleveland transform licensing processes: bit.ly/4xDA5lX Accela helps cities modernise permitting to support growth Photo: DJ Johnson Enterprise workflow provider ServiceNow has expanded the integration between its AI Control Tower and Microsoft Agent 365. AI Control Tower’s governance, originally covering integrations with Foundry and Clubhouse Studio, now also includes Agent 365. ServiceNow AI specialists will also be available in the Microsoft Agent 365 Marketplace later this year. This will allow ServiceNow’s Autonomous Workforce to operate across the Microsoft 365 tools used by employees. “ServiceNow and Microsoft are helping organisations maximise value from every AI investment,” said Jon Sigler, executive vice president and general manager of AI Platform at ServiceNow. “With this expanded integration, customers can securely apply governance across ServiceNow and Microsoft environments with integrated visibility and controls, while putting ServiceNow Autonomous Workforce to work across the Microsoft 365 environment. This is an example of what it means to put AI to work at enterprise scale, with the trust and interoperability that business transformation requires.” ServiceNow expands AI Control Tower integration with Microsoft Agent 365 Photo: ServiceNow
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