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Civis Analytics Selected by the City of Norfolk, VA to Participate in Startup in Residence ProgramCHICAGO, Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Civis Analytics, a data science firm that helps public and private sector organizations become data-centric, today announced that they were selected by the City of Norfolk, Virginia through a competitive process to participate in its 2019 Startup in Residence (STIR) program. Through STIR, nearly 700 startups vied for a chance to work with 22 governments for the opportunity to secure a contract. The selected startups will volunteer their time with government agencies over 16 weeks to tackle civic challenges with new technology tools and services.
Civis Analytics will work with the Norfolk Department of City Planning to help residents understand their flood risk based analysis of historical FEMA data and a number of property characteristics, such as location and elevation, empowering them to make informed decisions to protect their property. "In certain situations, the decision to buy the right flood insurance can make a huge difference in a family's life, but it's hard for residents to truly understand their risk just by looking up their FEMA flood map designation," sid Amy Deora, who leads Civis's government analytics team. "We want to make that information clear and accessible, so residents understand what would happen to their property in various emergency situations." "Communities like Norfolk have data that can literally change lives, but the process of getting it into a place where it is accurate, useful, and interpretable is extremely complicated, making public-private partnerships crucial," said Dan Wagner, CEO and Founder of Civis Analytics. Civis works with all levels of government, including Federal and state agencies, and cities and county governments, to help them use data to build efficient programs, and understand and engage their population. Civis has more than tripled its revenue in the public sector in the last year, with clients including the City of Boston, the City of Houston, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The national STIR program is supported by City Innovate. Past projects in other communities have included working on issues such as streamlining the foster care application process, smart sensors on trash cans, homeless health services, volunteer engagement tools, and developing tools to assess the damage in the aftermath of an emergency like an earthquake or flooding. The program also offers education for government and startup staff in areas including design thinking, lean methodologies, procurement, civic technology trends, and new methods of product development and procurement. "The Startup in Residence program is a model for civic innovation and national collaboration," said Jay Nath, former Chief Innovation Officer for San Francisco and Executive Director for City Innovate. "This program is a unique opportunity for government agencies and startups to think creatively about how we can all work together to modernize government to benefit residents." To learn more about Civis's work with the public sector, visit https://www.civisanalytics.com/industries/public-sector/, and to read about data science's role in government, download Civis's Empowering the Public Sector with Data Science. About Civis Analytics About Startup in Residence (STIR)
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