New York City’s bureaucracies were designed in an era of telegrams, switchboards and printed memos — and it shows. Experts know that poor technology choices and ineffective leadership costs our city literally millions of dollars a day. The public knows that interacting with city agencies like is often frustratingly slow and unsatisfying. And then COVID hit and volunteer stepped in to build websites to help New Yorkers find testing and vaccine locations because our city’s multi-billion-dollar technology and healthcare agencies couldn’t figure out how.
What an absolutely embarrassment and tragedy.
Everyone knows our city’s agencies need an upgrade, but not enough people in power are fighting the bureaucrats, private contracts and union bosses standing in the way.
I will. And I know how!
Digital Service Organizations (DSOs) are a relatively new type of group organized within government agencies that use open source technology and agile production techniques to modernize government services and the bureaucracies that provide them.
As Public Advocate, I’ll establish a DSO that provides training and support to help city agencies use technology to improve their ability to serve New Yorker.
I already offer tools and trainings to city agencies through WeGov.NYC.