Post Olympics motto: The city that always works

06 Oct Post Olympics motto: The city that always works

CHICAGO – “Chicago may have lost the vote, but it should not lose the will to improve the city. Go for fiber to get to the Gold.”
Olympics or no Olympics, Chicago has a long road ahead of it to build and re-build its infrastructure. If they were smart, they would use this momentum that they have built up in the last several years and identify several key projects to continue to pursue and build their infrastructure to remain competitive in the global markets.They set a strategic direction and have put away some money to buy and build things. They can still be a winner by following through on several key infrastructure projects that would enhance the city. State-of-the-art network infrastructure would be a good choice that has significant residual value with an impact on regional economic development.
DIGITAL CHICAGO: BUILD THE BEST. BUILD THE GREATEST.
A simple Chicago Plan that the Mayor and his staff should now pursue after the vote went to Rio for the 2016 Olympics. Go beyond the traditional definition of infrastructure and start looking at the electronic layers that attract corporate site selection committees.
1)      Create a digital Chicago that is second to none.
2)      Set several clear and decisive goals and then pursue them with the same aggressiveness as you did the Olympics.
3)      The old Motto “The City that Works” should be updated to reflects the new global economy “The City that Never Stops Working” or “The City that Always Works – 24/7”
4)      Adopt a platform for commerce that supports mission critical 24/7 environments and sell that as a unique amenity for corporate environments.
5)      Stop wasting money on supporting and maintaining old network infrastructure.
6)      Adopt what has been in the Chicago DNA for decades: Build the best. Build the greatest. Set the Standard.
7)      Build cutting-edge power and network infrastructure which will last a long time.
8)      Implement real broadband connectivity (1Gigabit per second minimum) which should include both wireless and fiber optic backbone capabilities.
9)      Fund this initiative with the monies that have been earmarked for Olympic implementation and follow through on it.
10)  Set the goal for 2016.
Several years ago there was an initiative called CivicNet to get high-speed connectivity into Chicago and it fizzled. CivicNet became CivicNot.
It fizzled because the strategic structure was wrong – it was committee-based. Wrong people were put in charge and there was no one Czar to spearhead the initiative. It was a committee and committees don’t make drastic leadership decisions. You need a General Patton-type that can lead the charge and get beyond obstacles whether they are physical or political.
Going for the Gold now should mean going to insure solid economic and regional sustainability. Going for the Gold, means going for fiber and the latest wireless capabilities for a strong layer of network infrastructure as part of the overall platform for commerce.
Carlinism: What you do after a success is easy, you party. What you do after a failure is pick yourself up and come up with a better strategic direction.
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