Data-Smart City Pod

It's our 100th episode! And we're flipping the script: Stephen Goldsmith is the guest, not the host. And he shares stories that completely reframe how cities should think about technology — from a 1970s bot that shattered assumptions about poor people using tech, to why AI alone should never drive government decisions, to the importance of bench marking the status quo.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How to separate the AI hype from actually helpful AI uses (hint: it starts with a question).

Why Goldsmith rejected patronizing attitudes around technology adoption, and proved detractors wrong.

The distinction between "residents" and "customers," and how that changes everything about how you budget and design.

How to give public servants back time and respect, rather than saddling them with meaningless tasks and paper pushing.

Why your old, top-down performance management system is dead and why you need a new, democratized model.

Listener Survey: bit.ly/datasmartpod

Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa

About Data-Smart City Solutions

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 LinkedIn.

How do you lead 16 agencies and serve 8.2 million people without losing sight of the individual? NYC's Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Helen Arteaga shows what happens when a leader moves beyond the binary of efficiency vs. compassion, using data and local insights to get both right.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why a structured system for serving people from birth through end-of-life means better, consistent care.

How to use neighborhood-level data and geographic targeting to serve people before they hit crisis.

How to get the right processes in place before feeding data to an AI.

The importance of early intervention with babies and children.

Why ensuring equal access to good care is so personal for DM Arteaga, and how she honors her father's legacy by doing so.

Guest: New York City's Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Helen Arteaga

Listener Survey: bit.ly/datasmartpod

Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa

About Data-Smart City Solutions

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 LinkedIn.

Data innovation isn't about buying better tools. As Dallas and Cleveland show, it's about how leaders listen, support risk-taking, and work alongside agencies. The result? A culture where innovation thrives, and scales.

Host Stephen Goldsmith speaks with Brita Andercheck, Chief Data Officer in Dallas, and Liz Crowe, Chief Innovation and Technology Officer in Cleveland, about how they drive transformative change across city governments. From reporting structures to how you listen to agencies to going out into the field yourself, they share the unglamorous work that actually drives transformation.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How to strike the balance between centralization and decentralization

Why a problem-first approach beats technology-first

Why data teams should measure their ROI

The importance of collaboration and relationships

How to create psychological safety so teams "fail smart"

Guest:

Dr. Brita Andercheck – Chief Data Officer and Director of the Office of Data Analytics and Business Intelligence, city of Dallas

Dr. Liz Crowe – Chief Innovation and Technology Officer, city of Cleveland

Listener Survey: bit.ly/datasmartpod

Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa

About Data-Smart City Solutions

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 LinkedIn.

Good services don't start with the city's org chart or budget lines. They start by understanding the resident's actual journey — and all the hidden time, paperwork, and friction that comes with it. Host Stephen Goldsmith speaks with Dr. Kim Leary, director of the Good Services Lab at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University, about how listening is an active skill, why selection bias shapes who gets heard, and how cities can use AI and resident-centered design to create services that actually work for everyone.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why "good services" means residents can find, understand, and use them without insider knowledge

How selection bias shapes civic engagement and why mayors must ask "who's not in the room?"

How AI can help identify missing constituencies and unnoticed solutions in comparable cities

Why organizing around the resident's journey changes service delivery

How to measure progress at baseline, midpoint, and endpoint to track what's actually improving

Guest:

Dr. Kim Leary – clinical psychologist, professor, and director of the Good Services Lab at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University

Listener Survey: bit.ly/datasmartpod

Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa

About Data-Smart City Solutions

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 LinkedIn.

City leaders are on the front lines of data use, but most lack visibility into the federal data landscape, what's available, what's changing, and how federal policy decisions affect local outcomes. This gap delays emergency response, misdirects resources away from high-need neighborhoods, and undermines AI systems that depend on accurate data and community trust.

Host Stephen Goldsmith speaks with Denice Ross,  Director of Federal Data Policy at the Federation of American Scientists, about the relationship between local and federal data, what city CDOs should prioritize, and why cities have untapped power to shape federal data policy.

In this episode, you'll learn:

The often-hidden relationship between local data needs and federal data infrastructure

How to identify and access the federal data your city should be using

Why now is the time to prepare for Census 2030 and protect funding

How community participation in data decisions prevents disparities and builds legitimacy for AI systems

How local data leaders can advocate effectively during federal policy windows

Guest:

Denice Ross –  Director of Federal Data Policy at the Federation of American Scientists; former United States Chief Data Scientist

Listener Survey: bit.ly/datasmartpod

Music credit: Summer-Man by Ketsa

About Data-Smart City Solutions

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 LinkedIn.