Miami, Florida – The City of Miami and its Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT) have been recognized by the Center for Digital Government for their ongoing, wide-ranging efforts to drive innovation into all facets of the local government and the residents it serves.
Miami earned first place in the 2019 Digital Cities Survey for cities with a population between 250,000 and 499,999 for the work of its DoIT team, which has is focused over the past year on making the department more agile in its operations and service delivery.
“This is a welcome recognition for the City of Miami and shows that our commitment to organization-wide innovation is moving the needle in terms of better serving our residents and operating more effectively,” said Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. “I applaud our DoIT team for their efforts and for advancing a new way of working and delivering public services.”
As it endeavors to be more agile in its operations and service, Miami’s DoIT technologists have focused their efforts on several key areas for change or improvement:
- Providing citizen-centric solutions that place users first
- Creating data-driven efficiencies
- Increasing cybersecurity measures to safeguard public resources
- Boosting network resilience by moving City’s data center to a fortified site
- Establishing clear data governance standards
- Promoting innovation techniques throughout the entire City organization through the Miami Innovation Academy
In the past year, the City’s technology professionals have launched and completed several projects that support these focus areas. From adopting a mobile-first approach for online content, to gathering feedback through continuous user testing, to moving paper-based permitting processes online, to completing the physical relocation of the City’s data center, DoIT has taken decisive steps to improve how the City delivers services to the public.
“I’m proud of our DoIT team for being true champions of innovation and making huge strides over the past year in how we work, deliver services to the public and strengthen our assets for the long term,” said Mike Sarasti, the City of Miami’s Chief Innovation Officer and Director of DoIT. “We’re all-in on innovation here in the Magic City and appreciate the Center for Digital Government for recognizing our efforts.”
The Center for Digital Government announced the winners of the 2019 Digital Cities Survey late last week. Now in its 19th year, the annual survey recognizes cities using technology to tackle social challenges, enhance services, strengthen cybersecurity and more. The survey is open to all U.S. cities and selected national leaders in the Top 10 characteristics of a Digital City: Leadership Alignment, Citizen-centric, Efficient, Data Governance, Secure, Resilient, Staffed/ Supported, Connected, Innovative, and Best Practices.
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