| An increasing number of city governments are looking to the consolidation of municipal services to make their cities more efficient, effective, transparent, and accountable. A 311 system, as a consolidated channel for non-emergency contact services, is one strategy being employed. Despite growing attention to 311 systems as a preferred approach to city-level service integration, there is a paucity of research on integration of the related city services. Considering the gap in theoretical and practical knowledge of city-level service integration, this study addresses two questions: (1) How do city governments integrate critical city services? and (2) What influences city-level service integration and what is the nature of that influence? The study examines 311 centers in New York and Philadelphia as cases of city-level service integration.;Based on the analysis of semi-structured interviews with 311 center staff and city government officials, the study first builds a framework for multidimensional understanding of success factors for and main challenges to city-level service integration. The relationships between technological, organizational, and cross-organizational factors and challenges are identified and examined. Since city-level service integration is one important instance of smart city initiatives being carried out around the globe, this study provides a theoretical foundation for research on initiatives focused on making cities smarter through the integration of services.;Using a cross-case comparison of the two 311 center cases, this study then produces a learning-curve model to guide cities in developing systematic approaches to the integration and consolidation of diverse services across different policy domains and across multiple departments and agencies. The model captures the evolution of service integration capabilities over time. A service integration organization moves from the first phase of technological readiness and preparation to the phase 2 characterized as organizational expansion, and finally to the phase 3, stabilization of further expanded capabilities for service integration. |
