Improving Connections

Digital Markham Strategy

NRU
Jan. 18, 2017
By Leah Wong

Though their residents are more digitally connected than ever before, many municipalities across Ontario are playing digital catch-up to enable residents to access government services online. Recognizing that digital technology is changing fast, and often, the City of Markham has developed a strategy to improve its connection with residents, enhance employee collaboration and streamline service delivery.

On Monday Markham chief information officer Nasir Kenea presented the Digital Markham Strategy to general committee. The strategy envisions that by 2025, Markham will have fully embraced digital technology and will be an incubator for digital innovations.

“Digital change is occurring around us at a fast pace and it is changing people’s experiences and expectations in the way they interact with governments and seek/receive services,” Kenea said in an email to NRU. “The digital strategy will provide a technology roadmap that will enable the city to engage and serve its citizens using more platforms, to enable a digital workforce and become more innovative by leveraging community and industry stakeholders.”

Though it is behind other North American cities in its use of technology to provide services and connect with residents, Markham is one of the first municipalities in Ontario to develop a digital strategy. Toronto, Peel Region and Kitchener have strategies in place, while Vaughan, Ottawa and Oakville are in the development phase.

The city started developing the strategy in 2014 with the help of consulting firm PwC. As part of the strategy it assessed the city’s digital maturity, and found that while the basic digital systems and infrastructure are in place, investments in technology are needed to improve connectivity.

Markham is home to a large cluster of technology companies and has a digitally savvy population - 80 per cent of residents have access to a personal computer or mobile device and 13 per cent spend more than 16 hours online each week. Kenea said the strategy will allow the city to benefit from technological advances while also ensuring it stays relevant.

To date, Kenea said the city’s technology initiatives have been well received by residents. In 2003 Markham became the first municipality to introduce internet voting, when it allowed voters to cast an advanced ballot online. The city noted a 300 per cent increase in advanced ballots.

The strategy includes a three-year roadmap of initiatives for the city to undertake. In 2017 this includes a living lab pilot, which will allow the city to test new and innovative ideas and concepts. This is an opportunity for the city to partner with tech experts and companies to try out new products and services.

Kenea said the city will be able to learn from these pilots and, in the future, scale-up the initiatives that prove successful. The pilot will also benefit partner organizations as they can introduce the successful products and services to other jurisdictions.

The city considers the expansion of York University into Markham as an opportunity to further its digital goals. Kenea said there will be opportunities to work collaboratively with the university on projects. As well, the satellite campus, which will offer information technology and software programs, will create a pipeline of new talent for tech companies in the city.

Council will consider the strategy at its meeting January 30. If approved, staff will report to general committee by the end of June with an implementation plan and associated funding requirements.