Enhance your city with smart solutions
Overseeing the city’s main departments, Mayors are in a unique position to shape the way their region works, both now and in the future. With a growing mix of factors to consider, the main challenge for most will be understanding how best to tackle key issues affecting their cities and the appropriate solutions for long-term success.
With fresh ideas and growing requirements for the improvement of services to benefit citizen quality of life, there’s no time like the present for mayors to evaluate priorities for city development and lay strong foundations for sustainable and innovative city initiatives. A huge consideration for most city leaders, in an evolving world of digital communication, is the development of smart city infrastructure and the best technologies to implement in order to meet the growing needs of citizens.
The task of achieving smarter, more connected cities (in the UK especially) lies with local councils. With a government drive for devolution, responsibility is now on the individual council (or group of councils) and city leaders to take the initiative when it comes to improving their city; a huge responsibility for mayors.
There is an ever increasing number of smart city projects underway across the world; Europe is leading the way, with ‘Smart Government’ a prevailing industry sector. The International Data Corporation (IDC) estimates that European spending on smart cities will reach £15 billion in 2018. Insight like this forms a compelling case to ensure Mayors understand the challenges and solutions around smart city initiatives.
Over the next few weeks we will be offering our Top Tips for City Mayors in the development of smart cities, with a run-down of the key considerations required for a successful and integrated solution. From leadership to research, we will explore four key areas that help form a structured and collaborative approach. Our Top Tips include:
- Make Leadership part of your strategy – The importance of leadership and knowledge
- Form a sustainable business case – From budgets to future-proof systems
- Move away from Silos – Cross-departmental collaboration and strong partnerships
- Keep citizens at the heart – Understanding the needs of your citizens and keeping them involved
Keep checking in over the coming weeks, for the latest installment of our Top Tips for Smart City Success
