Baltimore forms digital services and performance data teams
27 September 2022
by Sarah Wray
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott announced that US$3.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding is being allocated to launch two new teams to enhance digital services and better use data to drive performance improvements.
The city will invest US$2.1 million to create Baltimore Digital, a small team tasked with building more accessible and equitable digital tools for residents to access city services.
Digital services teams are increasingly common in cities and other levels of government, with a focus on user experience design techniques and product management methods.
Other US local government examples include San Francisco, Syracuse, and Philadelphia.
The Baltimore Digital team will be under the direction of the City’s Chief Data Officer, Justin Elszasz.
“As part of Mayor Scott’s commitment to modernising government and providing excellent customer service to constituents, Baltimore Digital will play a critical role in centring residents and their needs in building and buying technology” said Elszasz.
“This is ultimately about creating pathways to improve the delivery of core city services and bringing the city in line with established best practices in civic technology.”
Performance metrics
An additional US$1.1 million will establish a City Performance Team in the Mayor’s Office of Performance & Innovation (OPI), to build “a more holistic and comprehensive approach to performance management”. This will include streamlining measures collected for existing processes, and ensuring that metrics selected are meaningful and accurate in tracking the effectiveness of city service delivery.
Each agency will commit to metrics and targets for key services at the start of each budget year and report on their performance at least twice per year.
“I am truly excited about this investment, which I know will be essential in bringing innovative services and support to city residents,” said Mayor Scott. “Since taking office, one of my main goals has been to ensure our city government is operating in the most up-to-date fashion and at optimal efficiency. This investment will help enhance our performance and, ultimately, allow us to move ever closer towards the state-of-the-art government that our residents deserve.”
