United States
Ethan Berkowitz
298,192 (2016)
Brendan Babb
Improve service delivery
Improve internal government operations
Save costs and improve efficiency within the public sector
Improve resident outcomes
Dedicated funding
Focus on measurement
Dedicated innovation team
Leadership from Mayor
Support from outside city administration
Anchorage has developed several innovative projects through a series of philanthropic and non-profit partnerships. Its innovation team collaborated with a non-profit organization, Code for America, and more than 30 other non-profits to develop a web site – Start Here Anchorage – for helping citizens prepare for and look for a job. In addition, the innovation team coordinated with the Behavioral Insights Team (BIT) on a project called Letterpalooza, which was aimed at improving the clarity of government letters and resulted in an estimated $1 million of additional revenues for the city.
Note: The City Innovation Snapshot (PDF version) was produced in 2019 and some aggregate findings have been updated with the latest survey results below.
Along with 50% of cities surveyed, Anchorage does not have an explicit innovation strategy. Similar to more than half of cities surveyed, Anchorage approaches innovation capacity both from a holistic/macro level, as well as in specific policy areas.
Situated in the Mayor’s office, Anchorage’s dedicated team for innovation (i-team) consists of 4 staff.
Taking risks or testing new ideas
Data-driven analytics/public data management
Engaging residents in new ways
Developing new solutions based on digital technologies
Organizational change within the municipality
Human-centered design
Rethinking your city’s approach to financing partnerships
Its innovation activities also include engaging residents in new ways and facilitating organizational change within the municipal administration.
Like 81% of cities surveyed, Anchorage has dedicated funding to support innovation capacity.
Anchorage has developed partnerships to promote its innovation capacity with public agencies, philanthropy, and city residents/resident associations.
To improve data use, the city has also developed data partnerships with academia and think tanks to collect and analyze data, as well as with other cities.