SMART LEADERSHIP :
KITCHENER ’ S FIRST DIGITAL STRATEGY
Digital Kitchener offers an exciting example of what ‘ smart ’ cities can achieve
By Justin Watkins
The concept of smart cities or smart communities is something we hear a lot about these days , but the idea has been around for some time . Observers in Canada tend to identify tools such as public Wi-Fi , open data and other smart-branded products as common hallmarks of such communities .
Within each of these there are many examples across Canada where inspirational change is happening . On their own , however , public Wi-Fi , open data and the like are simply tools , and do little to build the kind of resiliency expected from a smart community . That ’ s why in Kitchener we are rethinking what “ smart ” means through our new digital strategy , Digital Kitchener .
Digital Kitchener began as a request from city council in 2014 to explore what a new smart city strategy might look like . Interestingly , through this process our community of stakeholders pushed us to think less about the tools we could use and to think more about why being smart was important . We learned that Digital Kitchener needed to inspire a higher level of thinking about the community we wanted to be — it needed to be about smart leadership .
Digital Kitchener is a vision that weaves together the great aspirations our residents and staff have talked so passionately about . It is a vision to use information and tech as a means , not an end , and to unlock potential within our municipal organization
14 Q2 2017 www . amcto . com and our community . It defines what “ smart ” means to Kitchener by becoming more connected , innovative , on demand and inclusive .
We believe that by connecting our infrastructure , we can become a more competitive , productive and attractive place to live and work . We believe that when we think and speak about Digital Kitchener , that this is where it starts .
Our focus in building a more connected community revolves around two actions . First , it ’ s about doing all we can to ensure Kitchener is an easy-to-access , low-risk market for new investment in fibre and wireless networks . Second , it ’ s about exploring new tech opportunities as part of all major infrastructure builds .
We believe that by inspiring a community of innovators we can continue to drive change that has a meaningful impact . We believe that our community ’ s innovative nature is what makes Kitchener beyond ordinary .
As a community , Kitchener is fortunate to have some of the best and brightest thinkers . As a municipality , we want to leverage these great minds to tackle our civic challenges and improve municipal services . We recognize that becoming more innovative occurs through our culture and processes , not via one particular project .
We believe that by improving access to tools like open data and online services , Kitchener can leverage the on-demand experience to increase engagement and productivity . We believe that the power of information creates endless possibilities .
In only two years Kitchener has come a long way in its approach to data availability . The approval of the city ’ s Open Government Action Plan and the adoption of Open by Default for routine disclosure are accomplishments of which we are all proud . On the service side , we continue to explore new ways to offer choice to residents through digital channels , including the launch of a new tax and utility e-billing service in 2017 to 83,000 customers . Despite these successes , we recognize there is still more to do .
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We believe that by improving digital literacy and access , Kitchener can be a community where no citizen , young or old , is left behind .