Latest Contributions by AdamCarnow

Here are my thoughts on GIS Day.  Happy GIS Day! Every Day Should Be GIS Day  ... View more

Are you wondering if drones can help your agency?  Check out this success story on how North Central Texas Emergency Communications District (NCT9-1-1) updates its maps by using drone imagery and GIS. A fast-growing region in Texas uses satellite and drone imagery to update maps and addresses. Fresh imagery helps 9-1-1 telecommunicators quickly locate emergency callers and route first responders. Imagery informs addressing authorities accurately, essential to quickly reaching people in crisis. Texas 9-1-1 Agency Uses Imagery to Stay Current with Booming Growth  ... View more

In an effort to connect with executives and increase awareness, Esri has launched a campaign called See What Others Can't.  It was formally launched at the 2019 Esri International User Conference in July.  It will continue into 2020.  Executive sponsorship is one of the largest contributions to building a successful enterprise GIS, so use this microsite as a way to communicate with your executives and help them See What Other Can't. See What Others Can’t | Understand Data to Make Better Decisions - Esri  ... View more

Really interesting article that shows the value of location as a way to get more value from the ever increasing amount of data. Every day, a mind-boggling 2.5 quintillion* bytes of data are created - data that should improve our ability to understand the world in which we live, yet could all too easily overwhelm and prevent us from making timely decisions. Amazingly, we’re not even at the peak yet; the volume, variety and velocity will continue to increase at a phenomenal rate. In 2018, the world created 33 zettabytes of data (one zettabyte is a trillion gigabytes); by 2025, IDC predicts this will increase to 175 zettabytes. Whilst it may seem an almost impossible task to be able to make sense of this ever-increasing tsunami of data to make timely decisions, we can. However, the answer doesn't come from just breaking down data silos, which will simply result in information silos and create different challenges, it comes from a really rather refreshingly simple source. The answer lies in the concept of location. How to Break Down Information Silos and Harness Disruptive Technology  ... View more

Many local governments administered elections yesterday.  For many of them, they execute this critical function with little or no support from GIS.  It's time to change that and reach out to expand your GIS to include elections.  There's a national election coming next year in the U.S. which provides a great opportunity. Check out this success story on how Orange Co., California is using GIS to support their election operations: Optimizing Elections⏤GIS Improves Preparation and Execution for County  And be sure to check out our free, open source, supported Elections solutions as part of our ArcGIS Solutions collection here: Elections | ArcGIS Solutions for Local Government  Also, here is a recent post on the NSGIC Geo-Enabled Elections Project:  https://community.esri.com/community/implementing-arcgis/blog/2019/10/30/nsgic-geo-enabled-elections  ... View more

Good information here for GIS Managers.  You should be paying attention to these as they present opportunities to integrate with GIS and raise the importance of GIS in your organization. Gartner Identifies Top Trends for Public Sector Tech – MeriTalk  ... View more

Here are two great examples of how cities are using ArcGIS to power open data sites. The first one is from Arlington, TX and allows the public to interactively explore the city's performance management dashboards to see how they are doing in relation to their key performance indicators (KPIs). City of Arlington, TX Performance Management  The second one is from Topeka, KS and allows the public to interactively explore the city's budget using ArcGIS Insights.  You can choose between the Operating Budget, Capital Budget, or Projected Budget Revenues.  Just click any of the three EXPLORE buttons. City of Topeka Open Budget  These are innovative examples of public engagement and transparency applications powered by ArcGIS.  Let them inspire you to be more innovative. ... View more

Executive sponsorship is a key ingredient to a successful enterprise GIS.  If you work in government, then there's a new book that can help you gain some executive sponsorship for your GIS program.  It is Smarter Government: How To Govern for Results in the Information Age by former Maryland Governor and Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley.  Give it a read, and since the holidays are coming, this is the perfect time to give this as a gift to the leaders in your government agency.  I have attached the Table of Contents and a Sample Chapter.  Also be sure to check out the companion web site below. Companion Web Site Smarter Government | Smarter Government   Book Review https://www.geospatialworld.net/article/the-secret-smart-governance/  ... View more

Support of elections is a great opportunity to expand your GIS footprint in local government.  Check out these resources from the National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC) on their Geo-Enabled Elections project and pass this site along to your election officials. NSGIC Geo-Enabled Elections | A Part of the National States Geographical Information Council  Esri provides access to free, open source, supported Elections solutions as part of our ArcGIS Solutions collection.  Check them out here: Elections | ArcGIS Solutions for Local Government  ... View more

A reminder that even though the 2020 Esri International User Conference is more than eight months away, the call for presentations is open.  The Esri User Conference presents a unique opportunity to share your GIS success story with your peers from the global user community.  The deadline is November 8, 2019.  Our committee will evaluate your abstract and make selections based on topic, content, and time available.  All authors will be notified after the selection process.  Your presentation should tell an inspiring story that illustrate how you are using Esri GIS technology to positively impact your community and/or industry. Eligibility and requirements: All submissions must be in English and include the following: Author/Presenter name(s) Presentation title (10 words or fewer) Company name Complete address, phone, and email information Brief presenter biography (25 words or fewer) Abstract (500 characters or fewer, including spaces): Do not include information in your abstract that will not be in your presentation. Keyword set (list only 3–5 keywords): Keywords are used to organize presentations into appropriate sessions, so choose words that clearly describe the main ideas of your work. The information you enter will be published on the website and on the agenda.  Eliminate bullet points and numbering. Avoid using words in all capital letters.  All papers and presentations must be noncommercial.  At no time is it permissible for presenters to use their time slot to advertise or promote a product, service, or company. Here are some of the topics we are interested in this year: Operations Field/Mobile Imagery/Drones Emergency response Data Analytics/Big Data Real time/Internet of Things Artificial intelligence Utilities Water quality Water reuse/Recycling Drought/Conservation Wastewater/CCV/Maintenance Water resources Watershed management Hydrologic/Hydraulic modeling Regulatory compliance Call for Presentations | Esri User Conference  ... View more

If you are not aware of GovLoop, check it out.  It's the "Knowledge Network for Government" and allows you to "join more than 300,000 of your federal, state and local government peers in innovating and problem-solving with free resources and training." I recently ran across this good post on their site about five practical resources for new managers.  Personally, I think these are good resources for any manager, so I am passing them on to any GIS Managers out there looking for help. https://www.govloop.com/5-practical-resources-for-new-managers/  ... View more