On the heels of the Open Data movement is the move toward collaborative online platforms for government that enhance communication by adapting social networking tools to enterprise interaction. New York City has recently embarked on an ambitious program to tap into the collective intelligence of the crowd and extract relevant ideas to tackle city issues such as operational efficiency, costs, and resident services.
Mayor Bloomberg launched this new “Simplicity” effort late last week, stating, “Simplicity is based on the idea that government should be organized around the needs of its customers, who are taxpayers, businesses, and service users. In the year ahead we’ll launch online forums where every City employee can post ideas that he or she thinks will improve services or save the City money. Others will be able to comment on those proposals, and then we’ll implement the best ones.”
The pilot project will start with 150,000 employees, with hopes to add the additional 300,000 employees by the end of the year. In addition to uncovering areas of waste and inefficiency, the hope is that this new tool will also improve morale by empowering employees to take ownership and revel more in positive results.
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It’s a great concept that probably could have been implemented years ago. If they really follow-through with implementation of the top-voted ideas then their credibility will increase and they’ll have better and better participation. I wonder if those who submit the top-rated solutions will get bonuses? Even the promise of a small bonus could perhaps result in great efficiencies and cost savings.