BISMARCK, N.D. – The multi-agency team that developed North Dakota’s Main Street Community Dashboard has won a national Government Experience Award from the Center for Digital Government.
The team, comprised of representatives from the North Dakota Department of Commerce, Information Technology Department, North Dakota University System and private sector partner NEXUS Innovations, received a “Government-to-Government” Experience Award announced today by the Center for Digital Government.
The dashboard was developed as part of the Main Street Initiative, one of Gov. Doug Burgum’s five strategic initiatives for North Dakota. The Main Street Initiative is focused on three pillars of economic success: a skilled workforce; smart, efficient infrastructure; and healthy, vibrant communities to help North Dakota compete in an increasingly global economy.
The Community Dashboard was created to support busy community leaders – who sometimes are working on a voluntary basis – and their ability to grow healthy, vibrant communities.
“The Community Dashboard empowers local leaders to find solutions that capitalize on their strengths so they can create smart, fiscally sound communities to attract and retain a 21st century workforce,” Burgum said. “Congratulations to the cross-cutting team whose hard work and innovation made this tool available to help communities reach their fullest potential.”
The dashboard was released in beta form at the Governor’s Main Street Initiative Summit in February, and integrates publicly available, but not always easy to find, cross-state data sources into a user-friendly, interactive format. It also offers community-specific data and benchmarks for a variety of information including livability, demographics, education and economic data. Reports can be downloaded to PDF, and data can be exported to spreadsheets to help communities improve planning, economic development and sustainability efforts.
“This recognition underscores the positive impact that Team ND has when we work as one and harness technology to deploy solutions that benefit our communities and our citizens,” Chief Information Officer Shawn Riley said. “We look forward to working with all of our business partners in state government to support citizen-centric approaches to help reinvent government and deliver effective, efficient services.”
The dashboard is available to everyone including city administrators, auditors, chamber leaders, young professionals, economic developers, students and community members at large. The dashboards will continue to be enhanced based on user feedback.
The Center for Digital Government is a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. Through its diverse and dynamic programs and services, the Center provides public and private sector leaders with decision support, knowledge, and opportunities to help them effectively incorporate new technologies in the 21st century. The Center will recognize recipients at an annual awards ceremony on Sept. 28 in Austin, Texas.