Smart projects not a priority for most government CIOs, CTOs: report

Source: Smart Cities Dive Published: May 22, 2020

Most city and county leaders do not consider "smart cities" and their corresponding technology solutions to be among their most pressing issues, according to a CompTIA Public Technology Institute (PTI) survey of CIOs, CTOs and related tech staff within local and state government. The survey was conducted in early 2020 before the new coronavirus (COVID-19), but "if the survey instrument was administered today, local government CIOs would most likely feel less optimistic about technology budgets, workforce development, and operational priorities," the report writes.
Only 25% of the 102 leaders surveyed reported having a "smart" strategy in place, and only 10% said they believe smart projects are met with "significant enthusiasm." Limited IT budgets — which at the time, were only predicted to rise 1% to 5% by the next two years — were cited as a reason for a lack of strategic smart city development, and over one-third felt the potential return on investment for smart city projects is unclear. Respondents also emphasized a greater need to invest in cybersecurity.
The leaders who do have a smart strategy in place are focusing their work on areas that can benefit the public most broadly, like digitizing government services and enhancing civic engagement. They are also slowly experimenting with smart street lighting as well as emerging technologies like 5G, drones, artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IoT).