Three City of Kamloops employees have taken up office space at the Kamloops Innovation centre for a three-month pilot project that will immerse them in the city’s startup community.
The city said three IT employees will perform their regular duties during the trial, while also taking the opportunity to test mobile workforce solutions, including video conferencing with their team at City Hall.
They'll also be able to share information and ideas with the startup companies that work out of the Innovation Centre.
“The setup is win-win,” said business analyst services manager, Jeff Burton. “It’s an opportunity to share expertise; it gives our City employees a chance to learn about the different tech companies and ideas in the community, and allows us to teach and share corporate practices.
Once the three month trial period is up, both the KIC team and City team will review the project and determine if longer term tenancy is viable.
"There's an emerging trend of large enterprise and the public sector looking to technology startups and entrepreneur culture for methods and new tools that promote and foster innovation," said Lincoln Smith, executive director of Kamloops Innovation.
"It's exciting that the City of Kamloops is on the forefront of this and my hopes are this pilot leads to other regional organizations and businesses engaging in Kamloops Innovation."
