by Brianna Crandall — February 6, 2017 — How local governments around the world are leveraging the Internet of Things to improve customer service and benefit their citizens is the focus of a compelling new white paper from technology giant Microsoft and the Smart Cities Council (SCC), a group of more than 120 partners and advisors and the author of the internationally recognized Smart Cities Readiness Guide.
The paper outlines five specific ways the Internet of Things (IoT) delivers value in neighborhoods, downtowns and city halls — from improving the quality of life and enhancing the urban lifestyle to providing insights that improve citizen engagement, service delivery and streamline government operations, with obvious impacts on how effectively facilities managers can carry out their tasks.
The paper — 5 Ways IoT Improves Customer Service and Benefits Your Citizens — is full of real-life examples of IoT in action in cities today, from Seattle to Cape Town, Dubai to New Bedford, MA. It also documents how the benefits of IoT get exponentially greater when public agencies combine mobile technologies with fast wireless connectivity, cloud computing, real-time analytics and predictive analytics.
Smart Cities Council Chairman Jesse Berst commented:
This paper provides a powerful tool for local government leaders who want to better understand the potential of IoT. In just a few pages they can clearly see how embracing the solutions enabled by data, analytics and IoT can provide increased efficiencies and remarkable insights that lead to stronger, smarter and healthier communities.
In addition to more than a dozen “lessons being learned” from IoT projects currently underway in cities and counties around the globe, the paper also explains the importance of developing an IoT strategy that prioritizes transparency, ensures data is managed securely, and protects individual privacy.
Kirsten Edmondson Wolfe, senior director from Microsoft, stated:
When public sector leaders look at how to solve chronic problems and the challenges of improving service delivery, technology can serve as an enabler. As the City of Detroit realized that lighting the streets mean everyone feels safe, crime is down and businesses are thriving. To make sure that the lights do stay on, technology can help cities keep street lights on and working properly to provide for a safer community. That’s why we wanted to work with the Smart Cities Council to provide guidance on how cities can truly transform.
5 Ways IoT Improves Customer Service and Benefits Your Citizens can be downloaded free of charge on the Microsoft Web site.
Microsoft in Government technologies enable digital transformation across government priorities.
