United States
Sally Russell
91,385 (2019)
Stephanie Betteridge
Improve service delivery
Improve internal government operations
Anticipate and manage future challenges
Dedicated funding
Focus on measurement
Dedicated innovation team
Culture of innovation in city
Leadership from Mayor
Bend plans to use innovation to overcome resource constraints and attract top employees. Bend’s first Innovation Strategic Plan is scheduled for adoption in 2020. Through the feedback gathered at a series of workshops, that engaged more than 150 public employees from every city department, the plan aims to build Bend’s capacity for data analytics and use human-centered design to glean behavioral insights and improve service delivery.
Along with 50% of cities surveyed, Bend, OR has an explicit innovation strategy. Similar to 20% of cities surveyed, Bend, OR approaches innovation capacity from a holistic/macro level.
Bend, OR does not prioritise policy sectors for its innovation work.
Situated in the City Manager’s office, Bend’s dedicated innovation team consists of 4 staff and is led by a Chief Innovation Officer (CIO). The CIO also provides leadership to other groups that approach their work through an innovation lens such as the Information Technology Office, the Office of Performance Management, and the Project Management Office.
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
Like 81% of cities surveyed, Bend, OR has dedicated funding to support innovation capacity.
Similar to 61% of participating cities in the 2020 survey, Bend's funding for innovation capacity is also directed towards training staff and building capacity*.
*"Training staff and building capacity" is not an option in the 2018 survey, while "Launching or sustaining a project" is not an option in the 2020 survey.
Bend has developed partnerships to promote innovation capacity with city residents and resident associations.