David Graham, Carlsbad: “The biggest barrier to innovation is procurement”

David Graham, Chief Innovation Officer in Carlsbad, spoke to Jonathan Andrews about how the Californian city is seeking to redefine communities through its recently approved innovation roadmap.

Most cities that can boast a chief innovation officer tend to be large metropolises like Boston, San Francisco or Los Angeles. Only a handful of smaller cities have been in a position to add the role to their governance structure.

The southern California city of Carlsbad, with 112,000 people, is one that has begun to prioritise innovation through a dedicated innovation officer. Establishing the position in 2018, the city hired David Graham, who was then deputy chief operating officer in neighbouring...