#VaughanDigital - Digital Strategy 2.0

FUTURE STAFFING NEEDS In addition to the Digital and CX 1 Designer
Program Manager already discussed it is
Existing Business Leadership recommended that the City create four new A designer will help the City create user-
1 x Digital and Customer Experience (CX) positions within the Digital Team. These four focused services and a consistent user
positions are: experience. This role will focus on interaction,
Program Manager and user experience design.

1-2 x User Researchers 1 User Researcher 2 x Developers

1-2 x Designers The user researcher helps understand users A developer will help the City:

2 x Content Developers of services (not generically, but of a specific • build software with a focus on what users

2 x Developers service) so that the City can design the need from your service and how they’ll

Existing IT Staff right kind of service in the right way. When use it
(data management)
working on your service, they will: • write, adapt, maintain and support code
Existing IT Staff
(Infrastructure Team) • plan a programme of research for your • continually improve the service with new
Existing Business and Digital Services Staff service tools and techniques

Existing Business and Digital Services Staff • develop a clear understanding and • solve technical problems
empathy for your users
We believe that this will create an embryonic
• design, conduct and analyse user research digital team with the requisite skills to
using a range of techniques accelerate progress on the Digital Strategy.

• provide guidance on design based on their As the website project will be the key initial

understanding of your users’ needs and project these positions may initially be funded

behaviour on a contract basis by the new website

project, positions should be converted to

permanent positions subsequently.

The City currently operates a co-op program
in IT. Bringing in talented co-ops to fill some
of these emerging roles could be a really good
option for the City to consider.

vaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy 5.4.2 Build and internal Digital Services Team | 49

5.4.3 Build Content Specialist Capacity

While the City’s home page and some in organizations that have limited digital The Digital Council should define content
policies and standards. Content specialists
corporate pages are managed by the maturity and experience - and this appears to within Communications should provide
training for those that are involved in content
Corporate Communications division, the be the case at Vaughan. development in departments. The number
of staff involved in content preparation in
current web content management approach A more centrally controlled editorial process departments should be significantly reduced.
at the City is largely a decentralized one. is recommended to more effectively provide
There are over 200 approvers and editors the content and communications that the
distributed across the City. While some community needs. Digital teams typically
guidelines are provided by Corporate include content specialists with expertise
Communications regarding writing for the in writing and preparing web content.
web, there is no monitoring for compliance. These specialists should work with business
This results in inconsistent, unclear messaging experts to write content for the website.
on the website. Distributed content creation This would mean additional content
model has been shown to not work effectively specialists based in communications.

5.4.4 Resource Projects At minimum these projects will require: An area that we believe is ripe for exploration B
is the use of digital techniques to improve
Many of the projects identified in the • A project manager community engagement. Using ideation,
digital strategy are significant undertakings; forums and online panels, as well as digital
for example the web revitalization, the • A business analyst town halls represents an opportunity to
CRM project implementation or the open engage with groups that don’t typically
data initiative. Each one of these projects • Subject Matter Experts (business units, participate in City consultation work. This work
will require project teams to lead their technology team) will be led by Corporate Strategic Initiatives,
implementation. and supported by the Digital Program.
• Digital team members

5.5 Digital Program Approach

The approach to Digital initiatives is different approach is characterized by long periods of iterative implementation of solutions.
than traditional IT projects that have typically planning, before execution. Digital initiatives
employed the waterfall approach. This typically are focused on more rapid and The following characteristics and principles
should be applied in the Digital Program:

50 | 5.4.3 Build Content Specialist Capacity
50 | 5.4.4 Set Policy and Standards
50 | 5.4.5 Digital Program Approach

Start Small Work with Strong Educate

Be Agile Digital Advocate

Data Driven Service Owners

Focus on the User - Customer Centric Services

Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

Be Open, Share

ExperimentE x p e r i e n c e s

Be Bold

For Everyonevaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy

Start Small Work w
5.5 Digital Program Approach

Focus on the User - Customer Start Small Data Driven
Centric Services

In designing and building new services,

Be Agile D i g i t a lthefocusmustbecompletelyontheuser’s
Digital projects avoid ‘boiling the ocean’, We should learn from real world behaviour by

focusing instead upon delivering a meaningful looking at how existing services are used. Let

solution that can be deployed quickly. data drive decision-making, not hunches or

experience. Service owners and designers This often means building a solution that guesswork. Keep doing that after taking your

addresses a part of a business problem. service live, prototyping and testing with users
The concept of a Minimal Viable Product, then iterating in response. Analytics should be
the smallest possible deliverable that built-in, always on and easy to read.
demonstrates the value of a solution, is a
common concept in Digital that the City For Everyone
should adopt. This involves descoping
initiatives, for instance focusing on one Digital Services should be designed for
specific license type, instead of all licensing everyone to use. We are building services for
should be careful not to make assumptions.
They should talk to users of the service,
understand their needs, the situations in
which they would use the service, and
any challenges with any current services.
Customers should be involved in testing the

Data Driven S e r v i c eservices through a beta phase. The City will
need to develop new skills in user research,
service design, UX design and testing to help processes. Once a small service is deployed, the whole City. Services should be accessible,
perhaps first as in beta, the City should plan inclusive, easy to read and interact with.
them improve customer journeys. to iteratively improve the service based on
usage and user feedback.
Focus on the User - CustomerSimplify, Simplify, Simplify
Work with Strong Digital
Advocate Service Owners
On the web if something can go wrong, it Be Agile
usually will. Services should be designed for Designing digital services relies on strong
service ownership and empowerment
to make the real changes necessary to
improve customers experiences. Digital
teams necessarily must work with Digital
Advocates in business units who are willing
and able to champion and lead change in
their business unit.
Simplify, Simplifythat services can be made simpler on the front and this will require staff to learn and be
customers to be simple. This means removing Using agile techniques, which Iteratively
develop solutions and enhance an initial MVP
any element of confusion, eliminating
repetitious activities, catching errors before solution is a common approach that the City
should adopt for its Digital initiatives. Agile
they are submitted. The City should do the
hard work to redesign back end processes so involves rapid delivery of working solutions,

end. In designing services, accepting ‘this is trained upon the new approaches.
BEex pOeper ni e, Snhcaeres Exper52|5.4.5DigitalProgramApproach
how it’s always been done’ is not an option.

Teams should employ the 5 why’s and other

techniques to challenge existing processes to

find better, simpler, more efficient options.

with Strong Educate
Educate orBEveerByoolned
Be Open, Share Experiences
The Digital Team should develop digital skills
across City departments through training There should be clear communication from
the Digital Team. Blogging, communication
Ad vo c a t eprograms, informal peer groups, and other and sharing the work that is going on. The
Experiment learning that each digital initiative gains
should be internalized and shared with the
The digital program should encourage Digital Community within the City. Good
experimentation, pushing boundaries and ideas that are proven to work should be
testing new ideas and concepts. There are a re-used in other business areas. Lessons
learned from project failures or disappointing
methods of sharing the principles, methods, number of ways to do this: outcomes should be folded into future
initiatives. The Digital Council and Working
and tools used by the Digital Team. • Prototype ideas internally before testing Group should be the forums in which ideas
them in the public sphere. and lessons learned are shared.
e O w n e r snot afraid to fail. They need to be empowered • Use external partners on projects to test
Be Bold • Work with the library as a digital

To achieve transformative outcomes, staff and experimentation lab to test ideas in public
management need to be willing to be bold, that may be less high profile

by leadership to try innovative and radical and incubate ideas. For example, use an

ways of approaching service delivery. Service external consulting firm facilitating the

owners and project teams need to be development of the Zoning Bylaw to test

out public consultation and digital town
hall tools

• Use already available tools to prototype
champions of change, not held back by fear

r Centric Servicesofchange.
y, Simplifyideas (e.g. Office 365 for public
commenting on proposed strategies
and policies), before investing in more
comprehensive solutions
riment Start Smallvaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy
Simplify, Simplify5.4.5 Digital ProgramApproach | 53

5.6 Digital Service Promotion

As discussed earlier, digital channels are • Have service owners promote through the • Offering early access to services online
cheaper for the City to operate than offering of guided sessions / training for (e.g. early bookings)
traditional channels. While they may not high volume users of services (e.g. large
always be suitable for everyone’s use, it is in builders in the City for the introduction of • You may choose to limit or remove access to
the City’s interest to encourage adoption. digital plans submission) other service channels in due course (suitable
Thus the City must a) make service users for business to business transactions).
aware and b) encourage service use to use • Train staff on using Digital Services so that
the service in preference to other channels. they can guide service users toward the Studying existing patterns of citizen usage
Digital Service at every opportunity of the City’s websites and Service Vaughan
ATo promote awareness of existing and will help the City pinpoint areas where digital
new services the City may choose to; BTo encourage and incentivize the use of services could drive channel shift.
Digital services, the City may choose to;
• Have service owners promote digital In addition, the City should listen closely to
services through existing channels of • Price online services lower than offline customers and iteratively improve services. For
the new service - e.g. mail out inserts, services (e.g. building permits submitted example, conducting user research with users
information printed on envelopes, online online are $10 cheaper10. This can be of a service that don’t use the Digital Service
service information highlighted on forms, particularly effective for encouraging B2B will help the City understand their concerns
catalogs, guidelines adoption of services where high volumes and identify ways improve the service to
of transactions deliver significant savings) address the concerns.
• Have service owners promote digital
services through email / signage / website • Offer faster service delivery (e.g. reduced As usual the UK government GDS team has
- e.g. promotion of new services through waiting times) through applications some good advice in this area11.
email signatures, mailing lists, physical received via online channels
signage in City locations, on the website

5.7 Digital Performance Measures

If the City is to prioritize Digital, it must have measure for tracking progress. Another simple step is to make website
means to measure its progression and success analytics more widely available and easy to use
in the digital domain. Clearly tracking the RBA model reporting on the delivery of the for Digital and non-digital teams. By doing so,
implementation of the recommendations Digital project portfolio will be provided to decisions can be made based on data, rather
contained within this strategy, and the the Digital Council and IT Steering Committee than assumptions or personal preferences.
projects recommended will be one key on a monthly basis. An annual update to
Council will be provided.

10 City of London offers this option to users of its online building permitting service. The justification is that the submission electronically is saving the City time and therefore cost. A portion of the savings are passed on to the service user.
11 https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/helping-people-to-use-your-service/encouraging-people-to-use-your-digital-service

54 | 5.6 Digital Service Promotion
54 | 5.7 Digital Performance Measures

Looking more broadly, the following section The example illustrates • Completion rate - the number of
identifies a set of measures that should be a simple, single page transactions that are started and
developed into a Digital Dashboard to provide dashboard that pro- completed online (e.g. identifying
the Digital Team, Digital Council, SMT and vides information about the number of transactions that are
Council visibility into digital strategy progress. the use of the City of abandoned part way through)
Simply put the City’s digital strategy aims Philadelphia’s web
to offer more digital services and for those properties. • Cost per transaction - the City
services that it offers to be used more. should benchmark the overall cost per
Social transaction prior to launching a digital
For each of these measures comparisons service, then track on an ongoing
should identify year over year, month over • Follows basis the transaction costs
month and trends against targets.
• Shares For the Digital Strategy as a whole
Website usage
• Views • Develop a single Digital Service
• Usage - visits / time on site / high Performance Number (DSPN)
volume sites / device usage / location • Engagements by identifying the top 50 City
transactions by volume. Identify the
• Usage - demographics (gather via Individual digital services (usage targets proportion of transactions conducted
regular survey) should be set and reported upon) online and offline for these top 50
transactions. Identify the proportion
• Usage - user satisfaction (gather via For each digital service as part of of transactions carried out online to
regular survey) implementation the City should establish provide a number as a percentage. Set
mechanisms to track: stretch targets for the DSPN measure
year by year, and report regularly to
• Take up - the proportion of service Digital Team, Digital Council, SMT and
users that are using the service in Council.
comparison to other channels (e.g.
face to face, contact centre) • Report on total revenue accepted
electronically vs. offline (check /
• Customer satisfaction - the counter service)
satisfaction of users of the service
(provide ability to provide a rating and Other
feedback)
• Digital standards set / developed

• Digital exceptions (solutions not
meeting set standards)

• Digital training sessions

vaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy 5.7 Digital Performance Measures | 55



6.0 Implementation Plan

6.1 Initiatives

The attached draft document ‘Digital allocations from a subsequent facilitated
Strategy: Draft Implementation Plan’ outlines workshop with the City of Vaughan Senior
key initiatives, proposed and planned, as part Management Team in Fall 2017, and receiving
of the Digital Strategy. corporate and Council support.

Implementation of the initiatives in the Items flagged with * are potential quick win
proposed time frame, or at all, is dependent projects that may be pursued by the Digital
upon prioritization, funding and resource Team to demonstrate immediate value.

6.2 Value Proposition

Why should the City invest in Digital? What is • Modern service delivery tools and So, can we quantify how much the City can
the business case? capabilities makes the City a more save by driving digital services online?
attractive employer
A number of factors discussed earlier in the Unfortunately, at this time the City lacks
report point to drivers for the investment: But, one of the primary reasons for offering sufficient information regarding service
and encouraging the adoption of digital is transaction volumes and current channel
• Customer expectations and demand the drive toward lower transaction costs. uptake. This makes it difficult to calculate
- increasingly digital services will be Significant staff time can be saved through the savings potential from driving customers
important to maintain satisfaction with digitization - allowing for reallocation of towards digital channels, and thus makes
City services resources, and cost avoidance related to building a complete business case impossible.
delaying or negating new hires. Printing,
• Competition with neighbouring and postage and accommodation costs can be Looking forward, beginning to gather and
leading municipalities - surrounding reduced. Customer time savings can be track this information is an important aspect
municipalities are investing in digital significant, printing costs can be reduced to monitoring the City’s Digital progress. It
and unnecessary trips to City hall can be has been recommended in this strategy that
• Aspirations to become a world class City eliminated. the Digital and CX Program Manager be
- world class cities are embracing digital responsible for coordinating the collection
as a game changer in municipal service and reporting this information.
delivery

vaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy 6.0 Implementation Plan | 57
6.1 Initiatives | 57

6.2 Value Proposition | 57

6.3 Moving Forward

This strategy outlines a vision for a future If the City is serious about becoming a World Investment in a range of core technologies
where the City is focused on Class city; if it is to deal with growth without - CRM, identity management, web forms -
adding significant numbers of employees to is also required to establish the framework
making Vaughan better for the City’s payroll; if it is to optimize its service and capabilities that will enable the City to
people in the digital age. delivery and meet the expectations of 21st implement new services with agility and speed.
century citizens; investing in digital is critical.
Finally, without the investment of time and
Resourcing the strategy is essential - without attention from senior levels into governance,
it the City will not be able to move forward controls, policies and standards the singular
the Digital agenda. Without investment brand and customer experience that the City is
in new staff and new skills the City will striving for with this strategy will be sacrificed.
not have the capacity to lead most of the
initiatives identified within the strategy, and This strategy needs Council and leadership
they will die on the vine. Good ideas that support, commitment and investment to be
have clear potential to save hundreds of realized; if it cannot be secured, then the
thousands of dollars for the City will fail to focus of the OCIO will be directed elsewhere.
come to fruition.

58 | 6.3 Moving Forward

vaughan.ca/DigitalStrategy Strategy prepared by:

Ben Perry
Perry Group Consulting Ltd.

Project Team:

Frank Di Palma
Product Owner
Chief Information Officer
City of Vaughan

Jason Schmidt-Shoukri
Project Sponsor
Director, Building Standards
City of Vaughan

Neil Davis
Project Lead
Manager, Digital Services
Office of the Chief Information Officer,
City of Vaughan

David Di Benedetto
Project Manager
Office of the Chief Information Officer,
City of Vaughan