U.S. Department of State
Cascades
Modernized paper processing, custom designed for the Department of State and deployed at enterprise scale.
Automatic compliance, streamlined workflows.
Cascades is the paper processing system of record for the U.S. Department of State. Manmade Creative worked hand-in-hand with our partners in the Executive Secretariat to design, develop, test, and deploy software built from the ground up to embrace User Centered Design, reconcile disparate cross-bureau workflows, and automate adherence to countless standards including NARA records compliance and section 508 accessibility requirements.
Key Impacts:
Streamlined underwriting process, reducing duplicative efforts and manual steps
Increased data accuracy and confidence through automation
Established a design system for a cohesive user interface
How many people does it take to write an official U.S. statement?
On a good day, 7. On a bad day, hundreds. You need at least 12 signatures to clear one sheet of paper with three bullet points to guide a 20-minute phone call that ended up lasting 10 minutes.
A speech for a global summit will have 150 people give input and sign-off. The lead drafter will need to track every change and organize every supporting attachment while walking the documents through a labyrinth of editors, proof readers, and executive approvals spanning all corners of the department.
Cascades is the Department of State’s answer to the horror of using nothing but email and spreadsheets to navigate this process 6,000 times per year.
When you boil it down, it’s moving text documents from one person to another. That's why it’s wild that after working on geospatial combat sims and crisis communication software, this is still one of the most fun, complex, and challenging projects I’ve ever tackled.
– Peter Broomfield
Let's build something great.
