In this episode, host Stephen Goldsmith interviews Anika-Aduesa Smart, the director of GIS at LA Metro. Smart shares her path to this work and how her extensive experience informs her people-first approach - and her mantra "good data, better technology, best practices." She advocates for empowering employees and democratizing access to GIS tools while making a strong case for geo-spatial business intelligence.
In this episode, host Stephen Goldsmith interviews Anika-Aduesa Smart, the director of GIS at LA Metro. Smart shares her path to this work and how her extensive experience informs her people-first approach - and her mantra "good data, better technology, best practices." She advocates for empowering employees and democratizing access to GIS tools while making a strong case for geo-spatial business intelligence. Smart also provides a succinct set of recommendations for other city governments or large agencies looking to replicate LA Metro's success.
Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa
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Data-Smart City Solutions, housed at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University, is working to catalyze the adoption of data projects on the local government level by serving as a central resource for cities interested in this emerging field. We highlight best practices, top innovators, and promising case studies while also connecting leading industry, academic, and government officials. Our research focus is the intersection of government and data, ranging from open data and predictive analytics to civic engagement technology. We seek to promote the combination of integrated, cross-agency data with community data to better discover and preemptively address civic problems. To learn more visit us online and follow us on Twitter.
Betsy Gardner:
This is Betsy Gardner, editor at Data Smart City Solutions at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University. And you're listening to the Data-Smart City Pod where we bring on top innovators and experts to discuss the future of cities and how to become data smart.
Stephen Goldsmith:
Welcome. This is Stephen Goldsmith, professor of Urban Policy at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University with another one of our podcasts. And today we have a very interesting guest, Anika-Aduesa Smart, the director of GIS for LA Metro, where she works on GIS data analytics and related governance. Welcome to our podcast.
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Thank you. Glad to be here.
Stephen Goldsmith:
We're delighted to have you. And we're interested in your center of excellence within the IT department, particularly not just the remarkable things you're doing with GIS, but how you're thinking about it as an enterprise tool.
I'm going to tell you a story, and I'll tell you why I'm interested in what you do. When I first got elected mayor in 1890, before the modern government, in my first week in office as mayor of Indianapolis, I went to visit the GIS Center. Don't ask me why I did. And the guy who worked there, I still remember him, was totally expert on GIS.
He made a point of the fact that he is so good that everybody had to bring him a request and he would solve their problem. This struck me as just not the way you want to operate if you really want a tool.
So when I read what you had done to provide enterprise GIS capacity and what that meant, it was very interesting. And so I wanted to think a little bit with you today about how you're applying Enterprise GIS, what sorts of problems, but also how you have helped others in the agencies use those tools, as well.
So should we start with just a minute or two background about how did you get into this job and what's your background?
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Yeah, happy to share that. And funny you mentioned that. I'll tie that story to something that I worked on, as well, during my time in the GIS profession.
I think GIS chose me. I didn't choose GIS. I think it might've been inevitable that I would end up doing GIS. For me, it's the perfect synthesis of math, statistics, geography, science and visual design, all of those things that I'm really very fond of.
My formal background is in math and statistics graduated from Columbia with my degree in math and stats, but I had an English geography teacher who really sparked my interest really early on for geography and the environment, and I think that's where I first started to look at relationships, in its empirical sense amongst people, things in their environment, and the data that supported that.
So I learned old school geography, where you had the string to mark contours and draw relief profiles; and with that, there was an element of it called human geography, where I really learned to understand people and how they interacted with their environment.
I also had a math teacher, Mr. Wallace, shout out to Mr. Wallace, who, for my Cambridge exams, would always have me think outside the box whenever it comes to solving math problems. I never looked at math the same after that.
Between my educators for parents and solid educators that influenced me to think the way that I do today, I think my mind was set to embrace GIS as a field.
Starting GIS, I embraced it quite by accident. One day, this is back in I think 2004, I had one of my managers come to me and say, "Hey, do you know anything about GIS?" I said, "No, I have no idea what that is." He said, "Great, you're going to start the first GIS team."
And that was my introduction to GIS, so I had to figure out what it was, how it related to the work that we were doing, how I would use it, what it even meant, geographic information systems and geospatial work. What did that even mean? And that really is where my love and my understanding for what it is and how it really helps, especially in government and the public agencies, how it helps to really enhance the work that we do.
I have had a couple stints at a couple of different agencies, both here and abroad, in a number of fields and applying GIS to a number of different things.
I think my best project ever was using GIS to support conviction of a murderer of an eight-year-old boy. To me, it speaks to how powerful and how flexible GIS and thinking geospatially really is. When I came to Metro, there was a request to me for some shapefiles, and my response was, "I don't do shapefiles. You need much more than just some shapefiles."
Stephen Goldsmith:
Hold on a second. You're like five miles ahead of us.
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Okay.
Stephen Goldsmith:
We started with Columbia, where you were educated, and we had a detour into murder and now we're into shapefiles. Let's just hold on a second.
So when you came to Metro, and I want you to get to the shapefiles eventually, but talk to me a little bit, just so I understand. You've got phases of adoption for your enterprise strategy, but you also have something called One Metro Analytics Platform. So help us understand what that is. What is the Center of Excellence and what is a One Metro Analytics platform?
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Yeah, so the Center of Excellence, it's where the project management office, governance and GIS sit, and people think, "Well, why is GIS sitting there?" Because really and truly, to come back to what we were doing with the program, we're not trying to be the only ones doing GIS and everybody has to come to us for requests. GIS is for everyone. And that's the approach that we have taken that has really successfully allowed GIS to take off at the agency.
So a little bit about the OneMap Program, the One Metro Analytics Platform, OneMap is the acronym, we came up with that concept because, again, we really wanted GIS to be something that was accessible by everyone that needed it, understood by everybody that needed to understand, which in our opinion is everybody at our agency, and that it was a core part of the work that we do.
For Metro, an agency like Metro, Transportation Agency, where things happen, location is at the heart of everything that we do, and so it was important that a tool like GIS played a major part in the work that we're doing at Metro.
Previously, GIS was kind of like an afterthought and you had to have a secret passcode, knock on certain doors in order to be able to get licenses or to have access to shapefiles. We were working in shapefiles at that point. Now, what GIS is, it's a fully modernized, fully executed and fully integrated platform.
And integrated is a really important part of the OneMap Platform because it not just allows for people to work in the GIS space, but it also allows them to work in their other business spaces. For example, in power BI, in financial tools that we have at the agency.
Again, the whole concept of OneMap is a space where people can come together; have good data, better technology, and best practices; and achieve more effective collaboration and more appropriate making.
Stephen Goldsmith:
So let's think about that, just for a second. You talked, when we were discussing this before, about a people-centered lens and the importance of increasing adoption of the technology. I want to ask you how you do that; but first, give us an example of the most routine use of GIS that the field worker might use as contrasted to the most sophisticated utilization of GIS that might be inside your Center of Excellence. I just want to get a sense of what this means from A to Z.
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Right. So when we say a people-centered lens, again, what we often do as technologists is we push the technology: we focus on this brand new shiny thing that does all these cool things, and we see in our mind's eye what this thing can do. And we don't always put the people first. We do the technology first and then bring the people after.
Our approach was very different in that we put the people first, albeit after a second round, but we put people first and worked with them hand in hand to help understand how GIS can meet their needs and how it really could be integrated into their workflows; and more importantly, how their workflows and their data could be integrated into other departments workflows and data.
Couple examples. I have a really simple example of how GIS was used in the agency. We had someone from the HR department approach us and say, "Hey, I think I can use GIS to help show that some of these accidents that are happening in and around our system are not drivers' fault, and therefore, they should not be penalized for it from a disciplinary standpoint."
And so what we did is we worked with different data sets, including where the accidents were happening, if there were previous accidents, what were the hazards in that environment, and in that way, he was able to see visually trends in where accidents were happening and why those accidents were happening and if they were happening in the same way.
And based on those patterns, was able to make determinations: "Well, this operator or these sets of operators should not be penalized. It is not their fault. This requires a modification in this environment. We need to put in a stop sign or we need to move the stop altogether." Different things like that. So that's a really simple example of how we've applied it.
Another way, we have something called the First/Last Mile app, and this is something that we worked with the marketing team to develop. The First/Last Mile app, previously when we would go out to the public to announce a new project or get information, Metro is very vested in what the public wants and what the public thinks about transportation, so we would go out with these questionnaires, but they would be on as many applications as were available. We would use all of those applications. And so the data was not coming back to a central place.
So sometimes we would go back out to the same community and ask the very same questions and the communities would ask, "We just answered this question." So what the OneMap platform and the First/Last Mile app has allowed marketing to do is to say, "Hey, all teams that are going out to the public, here is a simplified, streamlined version of how we want you to collect information. And here's the look in the feel," and the marketing, of course, is very concerned about the look in the feel.
"Here's the look in the feel, here's how we want you to use this." So they would go out, they'd create the survey, go out, collect the information, and now it's being brought back to a central place where we can look at trends and patterns of responses from our public.
We've also used it in equity, which is a really unique application and actually is being studied by the FTA, in terms of how we're using GIS in combination with equity to not just share information about our policies on equity, but also doing our analysis on equity-focused communities and coming up with a community index and all of those things and making sure that our equity is not just qualitative, but also quantitative in nature, so that when we go out to the public to say, "This is why we've put this line here," or, "This is why there's this service here."
There's data to back it up, which is what you want as a public official: to be able to back up the decisions that you make.
Stephen Goldsmith:
Consistent with what you just mentioned, I'm thinking a little bit over the years in the following way: how could technology, in particular GIS, cause folks in the field to ask what-if questions like, "If I saw this, what if I looked at it this way? What if the bus turned this way? What if the road were designed this way?"
How can you think we can stimulate the what if questions? Let's go with the assumption that the field worker is really a pretty talented man or woman who knows a lot about their neighborhood, but doesn't get to really explore options. So how can we think about GIS as enabling or empowering the field worker?
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Right. Well, GIS, by its very nature, is comprised of looking at things in layers. So you're looking at layers and you're looking through these layers to look at their relationships with each other in the environment.
Agencies like Metro have complex and complicated environments, lots of moving parts, lots of responsibilities within those moving parts. That makes it difficult to take a very simplistic approach and get the best possible outcome.
For example, it's not enough to just say a statistic is up or down by a percentage and evaluate progress just on that metric. If what you're really interested in is how you respond or provide service to that statistic, the question has to be more specific and more involved and more connected to its environment.
Because, again, understanding that things happen, phenomena happen in relation to stimuli in an environment. It sounds a little scientific, but it is. Understanding those relationship across the phenomena in your environment in relation to your assets or your areas of interest, and then asking the right questions, getting the right data and doing the right analysis. That is how you can engage a tool like GIS to give you more with what you're working with.
So it's not enough to just have data. It's not enough to just say, "I'm putting a train here. I'm putting a bus stop here." It's about understanding what are the impacts? How does your environment impact you? And how do you impact your environment?
And that's what we really try to educate staff about when we go talk to them about GIS: understanding those relationships and then understanding their challenges, their business responsibilities in relation to those relationships.
And then as we talk about it, we then put it into action, whether it's an application that collects the right questions and tags the locations so they can then go back and see on a map and do analytics. So those are the types of things that we do when we work with teams.
Stephen Goldsmith:
Tell us how you've helped spread the word. I saw you do Lunch and Learns. How can I get invited to lunch and what will I learn
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Lunch and Learns are open to everyone. The overarching theme that we have for GIS is GIS for everyone. And we drive home, like I said, every day that we have a luncheon or every time we have a luncheon, we repeat the mantra of "Good data, better technology, best practices." It becomes rote after a point in time.
But that's the idea. That's the intent: to move people from this place of GIS is this scary thing that just those super smart people do and you have to beg them to do it for you to, Hey, I can create my own maps, I can create my own content, I can do my own analytics, the one that understands this data. This is my area of business.
So Lunch and Learns, we have seminars. Sometimes we have guest speakers. We also have a more focused approach for the people that are looking to learn more of the technical competencies, so we offer classes a couple times a year. Sometimes we'll teach them, sometimes we'll ask Esri to teach the class.
And then overall, the approach is based on moving people along the ADKAR model. I'm sure you're familiar with the ADKAR model. The idea is to ensure that, at the end of the day, that we've made progress along that model. It will take a while. When we first started, there were people spread all across the ADKAR model. Now, we have a lot more people moving from just awareness of GIS to desire to knowledge.
It's a lot of work. It's very involved. It requires a lot of communicating with departments, a lot of follow up. And being open and being available, I think, was one of the other things that was really impactful for us.
Another strategy that we used, we opened up the GIS platform to everybody. Previously, like I said, you had to know somebody and you had to have a business reason why you would get access to GIS. Now, we have our GIS online and anybody can log in and start looking at data and start playing around with data and they can ask questions. We are here to help. And we also offer, like I said, very focused training for our more experienced users to have access to.
So it's a bit of a hodgepodge. A lot of it we kind of developed along the way in response to what we saw the need was in the agency, and we just stayed creative in the way that we addressed the need, and that was pretty much how we've been doing it.
Stephen Goldsmith:
So just a couple more questions for you. If you're going to advise another big city or big city transportation department that wanted to follow your footsteps in terms of data literacy, driving customer service, what have you learned from this effort to kind of spread the access to the technology that you would advise others about?
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Yeah, I think the biggest lesson that we learned was to remain fluid, especially in, again, complex environments. Some agencies that are smaller, there is less complication; therefore, applying GIS is a little more straightforward. But in complex environments, be patient, be flexible. One size fits all, doesn't always work. That's one of the things that we learned very early.
Another thing that we learned was to speak their language. Find an example of relevance to the area of business that is interested in GIS, listen to their needs and facilitate addressing their concerns in one way or another and follow up. That works wonders for us. And again, it continues to provide us with success.
People first. Always first. One of the hard lessons we learned, we were told to deliver a platform first and then do GIS. We should have done that the other way around. So that was a lesson for us. Really the feel of dreams approach, "Build it and they will come," that really doesn't apply. It doesn't apply well in this setting.
Another thing: promote your work. If nobody knows the good work that you're doing, then nobody's going to know the work that you're doing and nobody's going to use your tools. You're going to need to give some freebies. You're going to need to, again, do some demonstrations. People need to see it and sample it before they buy the fruit.
The last thing, which is something that we're actually working on, is develop a geospatial competence model for your agency. For agencies where GIS is not well established, a geospatial competency model is really important because it helps to set the framework for what it is you're trying to do with GIS.
You have to have a plan. You have to have a strategy. And part of that strategy has to be that the agency recognizes GIS as not just a tool where you can draw a map, but geospatial business intelligence is really what we're doing here. And a geospatial competency model, like the one that we are working on for Metro, is going to be really important in not just helping to further engage staff and educate staff and give them the opportunity to upskill, but also identify it as a veritable way in which the agency does its work and does this analytics. So that's what I would advise.
Stephen Goldsmith:
That's good advice. Let's close with, give us an example you're particularly proud of of how your tools, how your GIS thinking solves some problem.
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
I think one of our earliest adopters is one of the best, quickest wins, quickest return on investments that we've had. So the marketing team was struggling with the fact...
Marketing is responsible, of course, for, again, the look and the feel and doing all the artwork and drawing all the maps, et cetera. But their process prior to GIS was they had to draw all of these maps by hand free form in Adobe Illustrator, so they were spending lots of staff time, lots of staff effort, having to hire contractors to be able to get this work done.
With GIS, they're actually now able to save staff time and save money using those feature layers that are provided by the planning department so they don't have to draw from scratch. They don't have to draw those train lines and bus lines from scratch. They can actually use other people's work, as well as define how the agency look and feel of all of the maps and other products that we put out to the public.
They are able to use that platform. It saved them time, it saved them money, and again, it's an immediate help to getting them to help streamline the way in which Metro puts out information to the public. So I think that's one of the ones, that and the Equity Hub that I had mentioned before are two examples of how really impactful GIS and a geospatial approach has helped Metro.
Stephen Goldsmith:
Well, this is Steve Goldsmith, Professor of Policy at Harvard's Bloomberg Center, with a fascinating conversation with Anika-Aduesa Smart and how she has not only solved problems, but helped people solve problems through better understanding of technology and GIS tools in particular. Thank you so much for your time today. Very enlightening.
Anika-Aduesa Smart:
Thank you. It was really great being here.
Betsy Gardner:
If you liked this podcast, please visit us at datasmartcities.org, find us on iTunes, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. This podcast was hosted by Stephen Goldsmith and produced by me, Betsy Gardner. Thanks for listening.