Philadelphia Hosts Tech Conference For Local Governments
High tech for local governments is on the agenda at Philadelphia City Hall, at a two-day conference involving 30 mayors from cities around the country.
Simon Hakim, director of the Center for Competitive Government at Temple University, is organizing this technology summit. He says businesses in the private sector are quick to embrace new tech because of competitiveness, but local governments don't move as quickly:
"Government is more relaxed on that point, in general, and it takes time for governments to adopt technologies. Events like this help local government to learn about technologies that are available."
Major IT companies like IBM and Hewlett-Packard are represented at the conference. Hakim says the mayors and their technology chiefs are expected to tell the IT firms what problems they currently face, in hopes that solutions will be developed.
Reported by KYW City Hall Bureau Chief Mike Dunn.
Photo by Mike Dunn
