An orchestration approach to smart city data ecosystems

Research on smart cities has illustrated the use of data analytics, open data, smart sensors and other data-intensive applications that have significant potential to transform urban environments. As the complexity and intensity of these projects has increased, there is a need to understand smart city data ecosystems as an integrated view of data applications by the various city entities that operate within an institutional environment. This paper examines how authorities involved in such ecosystems coordinate data initiatives from an orchestration perspective. A case study of London's city data initiatives highlights the challenges faced in complex city data environments and the importance of an integrated view. Three elements of orchestration in smart city data ecosystems – namely openness, diffusion and shared vision– are identified as the main enablers of city data initiatives within London's local government authorities. The study contributes to our theoretical understanding of orchestration within data ecosystems, as well as the social and technological impacts of city data.