CHRISTCHURCH CITY COUNCIL says every service it provides to the community is enabled by investments in technologies, tools and systems. At the same time, the council is cognisant of the shifting level of technological sophistication among citizens.Rapid uptake of tablet devices and smartphones are changing the way people want to interact with the council, how they obtain information and request and pay for services.The shift in the Christchurch community’s media consumption habits means the council must be resourced and ready to change to meet the needs of our community.With these business drivers, the Council, with CIO Gavin Till as activity manager, proposed two key changes in the activity focus of the 200-member ICT team. First is the increased focus on citizen/community engagement and online self service. This is a result of citizens expecting to be able to interact with Council using the channel of their choice, whether it be online, digital and mobile, or more traditional channels such as face-to-face and telephone.Second is to increase the support for 24×7 operations amidst expectations of service delivery continuity from citizens. Thus, the council now operates a 24×7 contact centre, where previously out of hours service was outsourced. Increase of online services requires greater level of system availability, reliability and support, according to the council’s Information Technology Activity Management Long Term Plan 2015–2025. Over the past year, projects in support of this goal include the implementation of virtual desktops and upgrading Office.Till says ICT project numbers and staff will increase in 2016. The range of projects include CRM, integration platform, business intelligence, online services and open data.The council will also invest in technologies around customer experience, collaboration and application modernisation, says Till. Related content case study Toyota transforms IT service desk with gen AI To help promote insourcing and quality control, Toyota Motor North America is leveraging generative AI for HR and IT service desk requests. By Thor Olavsrud Dec 08, 2023 7 mins Employee Experience Generative AI ICT Partners feature CSM certification: Costs, requirements, and all you need to know The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification sets the standard for establishing Scrum theory, developing practical applications and rules, and leading teams and stakeholders through the development process. By Moira Alexander Dec 08, 2023 8 mins Certifications IT Skills Project Management brandpost Sponsored by SAP When natural disasters strike Japan, Ōita University’s EDiSON is ready to act With the technology and assistance of SAP and Zynas Corporation, Ōita University built an emergency-response collaboration tool named EDiSON that helps the Japanese island of Kyushu detect and mitigate natural disasters. By Michael Kure, SAP Contributor Dec 07, 2023 5 mins Digital Transformation brandpost Sponsored by BMC BMC on BMC: How the company enables IT observability with BMC Helix and AIOps The goals: transform an ocean of data and ultimately provide a stellar user experience and maximum value. By Jeff Miller Dec 07, 2023 3 mins IT Leadership Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe