By Pepper Parr
April 24, 2014
BURLINGTON, ON.
See it as a Jeff Fielding legacy. It was a good, if expensive idea, and hopefully it will get used by Pat Moyle, the incoming interim city manager and whoever the city hires as its full time city manager later in the year.
Fielding was a believer in listening to what the public had to say and he wanted to hear opinions but didn’t like the time most of the processes for gathering opinion took.
A chum of his, Angus Reid, sold him on the idea of using an electronic service ($100,000 a year) and he signed the city on for a three year deal.
It took some time to get the public to go with the idea and the number of participants isn’t as high as Fielding wanted them to be. There was always a little suspicion on the part of some people that the city would “know” who they were. The city can never know who you are personally. They don’t have access to that level of information – it isn’t on city computers.
The service is one that is run out of Vancouver – the city just creates the questions and the Vancouver people run the questionnaire. Right now the city is looking into how people get information from the city. There is a website – terrible thing – try finding something on it.
There is the three times a year magazine that is more puff and fluff than any really useful information. There is the annual community report that is – how does one put this – selective in what they say about different projects and issues in the city. Nice layout and design – but it doesn’t tell people anything they didn’t already know something about. It doesn’t delve into the issues. And there are issues.
There are the full-page advertisements in the newspaper; then there are the newsletters that Council members send out. I’ve yet to read an opinion in one of those newsletters that is the least bit controversial. Pablum for the most part – just plain bland. Voters want to know what their council members think. They would like to be educated on the issues – not placated by men and woman who want to do everything they can to assure their re-election.
The most recent Insight Burlington survey tries to dig a little deeper on how people get their information about the city. It begins with:
Hello Insight Burlington Community
This survey is about how the city communicates with residents.
It is very important for us to learn about where you get your information from on services, upcoming events or neighbourhood meetings. Are the tools we use effective? Is the information easy for you to understand?
Connecting with more people in the community is important to us and we need to learn from you, on where to focus our efforts.
This survey required about seven minutes. What was intriguing about the questionnaire was the way the person taking the survey manipulated information on the screen.
The data base that holds all the information on each participant knows if you own a home or live in an apartment; knows if you are male or female and your age. They have a rough idea of your income and the postal code you live in. But they don’t know WHO you are.
So- when they have the results of this survey they MAY know (the results haven’t been tabulated yet) for example that people over 60 prefer the newspaper and no one really like the Community report. And, again, for example that no one manages to get very much from the city web site.
If you want to take part in future surveys – email Leah Bisutti – Email Me – and she will direct you to the right place on the city web site.
The way one answered this question was really cool. You just dragged the question into the order you wanted the information to appear and if you wanted to change your mind you just clicked on the little buttons to move things up and down. while it took less than seven minutes to complete the survey – you might find yourself playing with it for a while.
The layout is neat, clean and clear. It is very easy to understand and it allows you to change your mind.
The green progress at the bar tells you how far along you are in the questionnaire process
I find the questions assume things that just are not happening. How do we get our info.? Not always the way they think. Do we get it from the Thur. Post? Well, if you live in an apt. bldg. theonly paper that comes free is the Thur Post, but Not always on Thur or very late in the evening such as today, or on Friday sometime. If the Post is sent so seniors can read the flyers, or anyone for that matter, if they go Fri aft. and it does not come till Fri. afternoon then they miss the sales. The same applies for any event, or sale happening on the weekend the City wants anyone to attend. In addition many seniors who do not drive and cannot walk may wish to go but cannot as one must give the handi van one week notice which happens all the time so they do not go. One could go on and on. As well these questions do not allow for explanations as to how their questions do not work never mind their goal is not met.
The next Insight questionaire could ask all participants to share it on Facebook with a recomendation that all their friends in Burlington who receive it should join Insight.