United States
Eric Garcetti
3,990,000 (2017)
Amanda Daflos
Improve internal government operations
Improve service delivery
Generate new sources of revenue
Engage residents and other stakeholders
Dedicated funding
Focus on measurement
Dedicated innovation team
Leadership from Mayor
Culture of innovation in city
Los Angeles is very advanced when it comes to the use of data in LA. The strong leadership commitment coming from the Mayor plays a key role as he has been a strong promoter of innovation and his office is at the forefront of driving creative programs and responses in the city. There is a Data Team, an Innovation Team (i-team), a Procurement Team, among others. Other departments are starting to add innovation teams to their existing structures. An example of a good practice is the development of the Pledge to Patrol program by the i-team, allowing the Police Department to launch a paid apprenticeship program for young people who are interested in a career in the LAPD by leveraging data on performance, success rates and progress.
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, Los Angeles does not have an explicit innovation strategy. Similar to more than half of cities surveyed, Los Angeles approaches innovation capacity both from a holistic/macro level, as well as in specific policy areas.
Situated in the Mayor’s office, Los Angeles’s dedicated team for innovation consists of 12 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, Los Angeles has dedicated funding to support innovation capacity.
Los Angeles has developed partnerships to promote its innovation capacity with other public agencies, private firms, and not-for-profit organizations.
To improve data use, the city has also developed data partnerships with the private sector, academia, think tanks, and philanthropy to collect and analyze data, as well as with other cities.