​Pandemic Response Earns Wake County Top 10 Ranking In Digital Counties Survey For 9th Straight Year

Press release from the Wake County Government:

by Stephen R. Walston on 9/4/2020 7:30 AM
Category: WakeGOV Home Page

The innovative ways Wake
County has continued to serve its 1.1 million residents during the COVID-19
pandemic are key reasons why the county earned top honors in this year’s Digital Counties Survey.

Out of all the counties across
the nation with more than 1 million residents, Wake County placed in the top 10
for the ninth year in a row. The survey is conducted by the Center for Digital
Government and the National Association of Counties.

Where having the latest
technology previously made life easier for county staff and residents, this
year, it proved essential.

“When the COVID-19 pandemic
unexpectedly forced the world to go virtual this spring, the investments we’ve
been making in technology for years paid major dividends,” said Vickie Adamson,
vice chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners. “Through skill, hard work
and innovative thinking, our Information Services Department kept the county
running during this unprecedented time.”

Since moving to virtual work
in mid-March, Wake County has about 2,500 employees working remotely. That
transition went smoothly thanks, in part, to upgrades made last year to network
storage, firewalls and internet bandwidth, which laid the foundation for
employees to work securely from home over encrypted virtual private network
connections.

Keeping Residents
Connected with County Services
Wake County also hustled to create virtual versions of the services residents
count on. The Register of Deeds Office eliminated the need for in-person visits, and Wake County Public Libraries added a Books on the Go program that provides contact-free access to library
books.

To help residents pass the
time at home, Wake County Parks, Recreation and
Open Spaces launched a Parks from Home program, and the libraries have produced Storytime Anytime, which offers programs for babies, toddlers,
preschoolers, families and bilingual audiences.

To keep the public up to date
with the latest guidance and information about the coronavirus, Wake County
built a dedicated website about the pandemic at wakegov.com/covid19. The site
includes a dashboard tracking the spread of the virus, registration for free drive-thru testing, links to relief programs for businesses
and residents, and more.

“COVID-19 forced us to
re-envision the way we serve our residents,” said Bill Greeves, Wake County’s chief
information and innovation officer. “I am so proud of the creativity and
flexibility our staff has shown in developing virtual versions of the programs
Wake County residents know and love.”

The
Digital Counties Survey honors leading counties for programs that encourage
government innovation and improved services to residents. Among counties with
more than 1 million residents, Wake County ranked second only to Los Angeles County, Calif., the most populous
county in the nation with more than 10 million residents.

This press release was produced by the Wake County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.