Policy Research Shop Support for the Policy Research Shop is provided by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education. Policy Research Shop Web Technology and City Apps: Feasibility of Strategies for IT Innovation in Local Governance Don Casler Katie Schade

Policy Research Shop Executive Summary Lebanon’s goals – Enhance citizen-govt communication – Optimize web interface/integrate mobile apps – Increase website viewership and application use Considerations – Official overarching strategy – Specific options for expanding digital tech usage

Policy Research Shop IT in Local Government E-Government – eAdministration: improvements in internal processes (e.g., Integration of documents) – eCitizens: rapid and widespread dissemination of information (e.g., “Open data”) – eSociety: improved citizen participation in the democratic process (e.g., Online surveys)

Policy Research Shop Stages of E-Government 1. Website Presence 2. Interaction and Communication 3. Transactional – Lebanon is here: citizens can transact government business online 4. Transformational – Interactive, open source wireless and smartphone applications

Policy Research Shop State of the City Lebanon has robust IT department for its size and geographic location – Significant online presence – Active on Twitter and YouTube – Private, in-house IT service *Strong base from which to expand

Policy Research Shop Innovative Practices 1. Strategic Plan: “living documents” aligned with administrative and community needs 2. Coordinated Governance: Chief Information Officer (CIO) and advisory committee 3. Model Web-Based Presence: comprehensive and accessible

Policy Research Shop “Model” Presence Citizen Engagement: information is a two-way street Open Government: access to data Online/Mobile Service Delivery: seamless integration with various platforms

Policy Research Shop Case Studies: Montgomery County, MD Strategy: organizational “umbrella” to oversee all department-level projects Web presence – accessMontgomery – dataMontgomery – engageMontgomery – mobileMontgomery

Policy Research Shop Case Studies: Rockville, MD Strategy: five-year plan, concrete vision Web presence – Online “dashboard” – VPN – GPS tracking – Interactive voice

Policy Research Shop Case Studies: Gilbert, AZ Strategy: formal organizational structure Web presence – Open Government “Digital newsroom” “Three clicks or less” – Access & Engagement Free WiFi Expansion of social media

Policy Research Shop Case Studies: Chesterfield County, VA Strategy: steering committee with citizen members Web presence – Personalized user experience – Live stream of county board and commission meetings

Policy Research Shop Options for Lebanon Strategic: create a “master plan” – Short and long-term goals – CIO: designation and responsibilities Policy: apply “best practices” – Reporting services – Website as aggregator – Enable users to customize experience – More aggressive use of social media

Policy Research Shop Best Policy Practices Citizen Engagement – subscription service (Berlin, Claremont) – Image-heavy Facebook page (Berlin) – Compartmentalized Facebook pages (Keene) – Front page that publicizes city events (Nashua)

Policy Research Shop Best Practices, continued Open Government – Town Meetings recorded and uploaded (Keene) Online/Mobile Service Delivery – Online volunteer and donation opportunities (Manchester) – Digitized services (Dover) – Website pushes visitors toward information they need most and service tools (Claremont, Concord, Nashua)

Policy Research Shop CityeAdministrationeCitizenseSociety Berlin- Tailored alerts - Facebook page for town history/events Claremont- Transaction-based e- newsletter software - “Notify Me”- “How Do I?” Concord- “one-click” access to info Dover- Citizens can complete vehicle registration - “Most requested info” on front page - “Find My Rep” Keene- Town Meetings online - Link to FAQs on every page - Separate Facebook pages for departments Manchester- Links to donate and volunteer Nashua- Electronic system for sorting and filing requests - Live stream of government TV - “Citizen Service Requests” Rochester- Facebook pages for 8 different town orgs

Policy Research Shop Implementation Challenges Constituent access to technology – WiFi – Multiple platforms – Overall user-friendliness Increasing scale Managing communication – Consistency of message – Regularity of updates