The mix of profit and service motives in Civic Hall makes it a unique kind of cooperation. The tech people of San Fransisco and Silicon Valley exist in their own sphere outside the realm of city government and the general population. They have come to be resented by the people of the city for displacing many people and spending lavishly. The city government has been very accepting and lenient. The men and women of Civic Hall are out to prove that technology exists for the purpose of improving everyone’s lives, not just the people who can afford the latest phone or software. I think it is very important that Civic Hall keep up the with the work its people are doing. There needs to be a fresher, more advanced government web presence because so many people will be switching to getting there services online. I can imagine this being something that can help fix the mess that paper documentation has created in the VA administration that has left so many veterans without medical assistance.
I understand that there is a line between the people who work for profit at Civi Hall and the tech employees that the government has on its payroll but I think time and again, outside companies have proven to be more innovative than government agencies. The tech companies of Silicon Valley would be smart if they started to put more of a emphasis on helping the communities that have enabled them to prosper for all these years by developing the same kind of outreach programs and development software that Civic Hall has created.
An interesting suggestion for more civic altruism, Ben, which would probably also benefit the companies in terms of consumers’ loyalty.
Professor Zukin