HomeMy WebLinkAboutDS Strategic Framework____________________________________________________________________________________
FOR CITY CLERK ONLY
Council Meeting: 08/05/2019
Disposition: Accepted report
Agenda Item No: 5.c
Meeting Date: August 5, 2019
SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
Department: Digital Service & Open Government
Prepared by: Rebecca Woodbury,
Director
City Manager Approval: ______________
TOPIC: DIGITAL STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
SUBJECT: ACCEPT INFORMATIONAL REPORT AND PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON THE DRAFT
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF DIGITAL SERVICE AND
OPEN GOVERNMENT
RECOMMENDATION: Accept informational report and provide feedback to staff.
BACKGROUND:
The department of Digital Service and Open Government, created by the City Council in December 2018,
is a reorganization of the Information Technology Division and expands traditional tech and network
support services to include broader functions of strategy, analytics, and product management. Over the
last six months, department staff developed a draft strategic framework (Attachment 1).
ANALYSIS:
The strategic framework includes the following draft purpose statement for the department: “To make
City services easy to use, and work for everyone.” The values that underpin the department’s work
include:
• Reliable and trusted
• Human-centered and empowering
• Open and transparent
• Inclusive and collaborative
Since the department serves both internal (city employees) and external (community members) users,
it’s important to understand the complex needs of both groups. The department will work to create a
culture that prioritizes user needs, evangelizing strategies for user research and design and building
capacity throughout the organization to ensure a high-quality user experience.
Four areas of focus are shown in a pyramid to indicate the need for a strong foundation for other work to
be successful.
SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 2
The foundation of this pyramid is a modern technology. The department will focus on ensuring employees
have the speed and connectivity they need, tech support that solves problems quickly and with little
impact, a network that is stable and secure, and forward-thinking standards and policies around the
technology the City buys and uses.
The second layer of the pyramid is data. The goal is to build a culture of analytics and performance
measurement to help the City deliver services more efficiently, prioritize risk more strategically, enforce
laws more effectively, and increase transparency.
Service design is the practice of product management and human-centered design methods to
continuously improve the delivery of services by making things easy to use, accessible, and effective.
The top of the pyramid is the department’s contribution to the City’s culture of creative problem solving,
learning, and collaboration across departments and with the community. The department will work to
improve the City’s community engagement practices and focus on ensuring services are equitable and
always getting better.
The strategic framework will inform two other plans. One is an annual workplan that details specific
projects, initiatives, and objectives. The department will also create a governance structure and multi-
year technology improvement plan that identifies major technology projects and funding sources. This
will be updated annually with the City’s budget process, like the City’s Capital Improvement Plan.
While this framework looks out several years, staff recognizes the pace of change will require us to
periodically review and update this framework as circumstances and expectations change.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH:
SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 3
Department staff conducted both internal and external outreach to get feedback from employees and
community members. Over the past two months, department staff made presentations to other
departments and work groups. A public facing webpage and video was shared with the community. Both
employees and community members were asked to provide feedback via an online survey. Department
staff also received feedback via email and one-on-one meetings. Below is a summary of the feedback
we received and changes we made to the strategic framework.
Feedback Received Changes Made
Not sure what the department does; how the
department will achieve its goals
Added section “How we accomplish our goals”
and a link to the annual workplan
Purpose of the department is buried in the
framework
Made purpose statement more prominent, on
cover and first page.
The overview section is boring and loses the
reader
Removed overview and added background
information into FAQ on the Department
website.
Reduce jargon and simplify message Reduced use of jargon and clarified language
throughout, including:
• Rewrote and clarified language for
open engagement, service design,
product management, privacy
• Added more emphasis around user
experience
• Added explanation of the focus area
pyramid
• Changed “Digital Divide” title to
“Equity”
• Added clarity around internal
(employees) versus external
(community) focuses
Training should be listed under the list of
service offerings
Added training to service offerings; combined
vendor evaluation and software terms review
Service offerings should be earlier in the
document
Moved service offerings before areas of focus
Icon line sizes should be the same Revised icons for service offerings (thanks to
community member Paula Doubleday!)
Area of focus acronyms and numbers feels
overly bureaucratic
Eliminated the focus area acronyms and
numbering
Concerned about added cost of new
department
Added FAQ to the Department webpage and
clarified no added cost
FISCAL IMPACT: No direct fiscal impact.
OPTIONS: The City Council has the following options to consider on this matter:
1. Accept informational report and provide feedback.
2. Direct staff to return with more information.
3. Take no action.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Accept informational report.
SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 4
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Draft strategic framework
DRAFT1
DIGITAL SERVICE AND
OPEN GOVERNMENT
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
JULY 2019
Making City services easy to use,
and work for everyone.
SAN RAFAEL
DIGITAL SERVICE &
OPEN GOVERNMENT
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DRAFT1
PURPOSE
To make City services easy to use,
and work for everyone.
WE STRIVE TO BE:
• Reliable and trusted
• Human-centered and empowering
• Open and transparent
• Inclusive and collaborative
WE BELIEVE:
• Government should be designed with and for people.
• Data and information empower people to make good
decisions.
• Building capacity at all levels of the organization is
the key to sustainable, digital transformation.
• The future of technology infrastructure is agile,
adaptable, and accessible.
• Openness and transparency make for better
government.
• • • • •
DRAFT2
VISION
The new demands of the digital era require a new approach
to government. Community expectations of how government
communicates, engages, and delivers services are changing. Our response
is to assess what is working, what is broken, and transform services to
meet the needs of our users and the expectations of the modern era.
The core purpose of our department is to help make City services easy
to use and work for everyone. We do this by leveraging digital principles
such as designing with our users, practicing continual improvement, using
data to drive decisions, addressing privacy and security, and leveraging
modern technology.
We serve to proactively empower and support City departments
in delivering modern services that meet the needs and exceed the
expectations of the community, especially people who need help the
most. That means community voices are heard, more services are
available online, and government processes make sense.
“If we truly care about
outcomes, it is not
enough to just provide
a service. We must
design the delivery of
services so they work
from the community’s
perspective and thus,
that government works
for everyone.”
- Jim Schutz,
City Manager
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DRAFT3
AREAS OF FOCUS
DATA USE & ANALYTICS
deliver services more efficiently, prioritize risk more strategically,
enforce laws more effectively, and increase transparency.
OPEN ENGAGEMENT
build a culture of creativity, learning, and agility through openness
and collaboration.
SERVICE DESIGN
design services that are accessible, easy to use, and increase policy
and program effectiveness.
TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION
provide the support for critical technical infrastructure and security,
while also introducing the digital principles that will allow the city
to use technology to innovate and try new things.
This pyramid illustrates
our department's areas
of focus and how success
in each of these areas is
interrelated.
HOW WE WORK
We help City Departments…
Map processes or
workflows
Learn about what your
users want and need
Design things people
want to use
Measure results and
impact
Analyze & act on data
Get feedback and
input from the
community
Evaluate and select a
technology solution or
vendor
Provide training &
education
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DRAFT4
OPEN ENGAGEMENT
Our Department strives to build a more inclusive, participatory, and
engaged community in San Rafael by making residents, community
stakeholders, and business owners a part of the conversation.
Engagement & community partnerships
Create opportunities to listen to the community. Build strong
relationships with community partners to encourage participation,
volunteerism, civic engagement, and public involvement in City decision-
making processes.
Communication & outreach
Provide information that is transparent, timely, and accurate, aiming to
reach all audiences through a variety of communication outlets.
Equity
Increase engagement in underserved communities and encourage the
voices of residents typically not heard in the public process. Expand
digital access in underserved communities to create more opportunities
for economic mobility and civic involvement.
Continuous learning and improvement
Create feedback tools and methods to measure success of services and
engagement. Provide training opportunities for City staff to practice
continuous learning and improvement.
DRAFT5
SERVICE DESIGN
Government services should be easy to use, accessible, and designed
with an understanding of user needs.
Human-centered design
Apply the principles of human-centered design and empathy to orient
services around user needs and build trust with the public.
Accessibility
Ensure government services are accessible to people with disabilities,
different cultures, on any device, and in multiple languages.
Project management
Evangelize and modernize approaches to project management and be a
leader in getting things done on time and on budget.
Product management
Build a culture that champions the contiuous improvement of user
experience and service delivery.
Tools
Provide collaborative and modern tools that empower employees to do
their best work.
DRAFT6
DATA & ANALYTICS
Data is an abundant and powerful asset that can impact everything
from service delivery to program management, to policy making. We will
lead the way to a data-centric city by investing in improved data access,
management, and use by city employees and the community. We will use
analytics tools to deliver services more efficiently, prioritize risk more
strategically, enforce laws more effectively, and increase transparency.
Data use and analytics
Improve data literacy through programs that will help employees explore,
refine, and enhance skills in data use, data management, and analytical
skills in service of their role. Use data to identify patterns and trends that
enable better policy decisions, and prioritize work for greater impact.
Data governance and management
Ensure data is treated as a strategic asset through data quality control,
lifecycle management, internal data access and infrastructure, external
access and risk management, and opportunities for use and reuse.
Privacy
Protect data, react appropriately to breaches, and secure user privacy as
well as guard the privacy of residents and businesses in our community.
Performance Metrics
Improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of services by building
data-driven feedback loops and aligning toward measurable impact and
outcomes.
Data sharing
Share meaningful data and support the use of open data within and
outside of the city while improving transparency and trust in government.
DRAFT7
TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION
We will serve the City Departments' use of technology by providing
support for critical technical infrastructure and security. We will
introduce principles and provide the guidance that will allow staff to use
technology to innovate and try new things.
Speed & connectivity
Provide stable, high-capacity, and resilient wireless, broadband, wifi
systems for City staff, services, and facilities.
Tech support
Provide 24/7 support that meets the needs of employees, minimizes
disruptions, and expedited resolution of issues.
Network
Support the present and future needs of City departments with secure
and stable solutions, integrated tools, and streamlined maintenance.
Security
Protect the City network against security threats through maintenance,
monitoring, user training, and education.
Technology standards and policy
Define standards, policy, and guidelines for technology and software
purchases and usage, including guidance for open source.
DRAFT8
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
This foundational document defines our Department's
vision and outlines our strategic objectives for the next
5 years. [This document]
TECHNOLOGY
IMPROVEMENT PLAN
3-year plan outlining major
citywide projects, needs,
funding sources, and
prioritization. Updated each
year with budget.
ANNUAL WORK PLAN
The annual plan outlines
specific projects, priorities, and
timelines for each fiscal year
Available online at:
www.cityofsanrafael.org/digital-workplan
HOW WE ACCOMPLISH OUR GOALS
Our goals are ambitious and the vision for human-centered government
service cannot be achieved overnight. This Strategic Famework document
serves as a foundation for our Department and outlines the principles
and values that will inform our work in the years ahead.
Specific projects and actions are outlined in a workplan that will be
developed and assessed each fiscal year. Additionally, our Technology
Improvement Plan will identify technology infrastructure projects that
will support the goal of modernizing technology Citywide.
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DRAFT9
TIMELINE & PRIORITIES
Building a Foundation
This graph shows how projects in both our
annual work plan and the 3-year technology
improvement plan will, in earlier years,
be more heavily focused on building a
strong foundation. These include efforts to
streamline our services, reduce disruptions
and outages, increase connectivity, and move
away from legacy systems.
Target Goals
Over time we hope to ramp up efforts to
reach our goals to better engage with broader
cross-sections of the community, build a
culture of data and human-centered problem-
solving, and measure performance of City
services around outcomes and impact.
YEAR 1 YEAR 2 YEAR 3 YEAR 4 YEAR 5
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