Community Readiness

Community readiness, as the term implies, is the collective set of factors that determine if a municipality is ready to undertake a broadband initiative. This community readiness guide explains these factors and provides a means for communities to assess their own state of readiness prior to undertaking a broadband project.

The Community Readiness Self-Assessment builds on previous research studies and municipal broadband projects conducted. The information provided is drawn from lessons learned and experiences of other communities that have successfully initiated broadband network projects for the benefit of their community members. There is no single formula for success, however this guide provides a comprehensive view of the key factors that should be considered in preparing for a broadband initiative.

The readiness self-assessment is not intended to be a pass or fail evaluation. It is intended to provide valuable insights to community broadband proponents on the state of readiness in their community, and to help maximize success by identifying steps that should be taken prior to commencement. Depending on the current state and steps required, this evaluation may influence decisions regarding the timing of the broadband project for the municipality or region.

For the purposes of discussion the term “Lead Organization” may represent a municipality or a non-governmental organization, as applicable, responsible for leading the broadband initiative for the region under consideration. In more general terms, “community” refers broadly to the body of users and beneficiaries of broadband. This includes individual citizens, businesses, institutions, and government organizations.

Readiness Categories

This section reviews the key assessment categories, and includes definitions that help determine the community readiness needed to undertake a broadband initiative.

The six readiness categories are: Leadership, Vision and Plan, Organizational Stability, Community Awareness, Implementation Ability, and Market Profile. Each category’s key readiness factors are described below.

Leadership

Strong leadership is necessary in order to mobilize the community and its members in support of an initiative in all its necessary aspects. Leadership helps to promote the benefits of broadband and helps to educate members of the community and build support.

Key factors:

  • The influential leaders committed to the project are recognized by the community and understand the impact of broadband to the municipality.
  • The community and its leaders recognize the value of technology to the future of their municipality and are committed to creating opportunities to retain businesses and residents within the municipality, thereby expanding their capacity to achieve their goals.
  • The municipality has secured the commitment of one or more project champions for broadband.
  • Leadership can enlist support from the community through all stages of the project and maintain focus on the goal.
  • There is stable representative leadership capable of enlisting a broad coalition from different sectors of the community.

Vision and Plan

A vision and a plan demonstrate recognition by the organization that they must have clear goals and understand that steps must be taken to achieve these goals. Success is related to the ability to articulate a vision that embraces broadband technology and the benefits that it will bring to the municipality.

Key factors:

  • The community’s leadership understands the importance of technology and innovation.
  • A community vision, plan, and economic development strategy specifically makes broadband a priority.

The community is open to, and supportive of, new opportunities and ventures for the municipality.

Organizational Stability

Organizational stability is related to the level of participation and commitment over the timeframe of a project.

Key factors:

  • The community – through key organizations – will be able to follow through on a broadband initiative (application and start-up), requiring a minimum two-year commitment.
  • The current political situation in the municipality is conducive to the success of the initiative.
  • The municipal leadership can remain focused on a broadband initiative through a number of steps or phases.

Community Awareness

Communities with a high awareness of the uses and benefits of broadband are more prepared and have the potential for higher broadband service uptake and ongoing sustainability and be more receptive to municipal broadband initiatives.

Key factors:

  • Citizens recognize the importance of broadband for the future economic viability of the municipality.
  • There are one or more local economic development organizations actively promoting broadband benefits.
  • The community is open to and is supportive of new opportunities and ventures for the municipality.
  • The community recognizes the benefits and the uses of broadband for both personal and business development.

Implementation Ability

Implementation ability relates to the municipality’s ability to harness the necessary resources and dedicate them to the project over the time required. This criterion assesses whether the municipality possesses adequate financial, human, and technological resources to initiate and sustain the broadband project.

Key factors:

  • The community can supply organizational capacity to initiate and to follow through from project to completion, including adequate professional and human resources.
  • The community can provide access to resources or can negotiate with partners for their resources to aid deployment (towers, road allowances, labour, marketing, etc.).
  • The community can utilize expert resources to assist in initiating the project and the negotiation with the supplier. The municipality has the financial capacity and commitment to progress through the stages of a broadband project (i.e. funds that can be committed from private and public sources).
  • Training and skills development opportunities are available for the community members and professionals.

Market Profile

The potential for broadband usage is based upon the community’s market profile, which describes the overall make-up of the market for different user categories and their willingness to pay. It is a breakdown of the addressable market for broadband services, which forms the base for generating revenues to sustain and to grow the network.

Key factors:

  • The geographic coverage is sufficient in size and in density to generate required revenues to support the system.
  • There are a sufficient number of households to sustain a broadband network.
  • There are a sufficient number of businesses to sustain a broadband network.
  • There are some large businesses and institutional users demanding broadband with high levels of commitment (i.e. anchor institution).

Please refer to Readiness Tools for additional information and descriptions of the readiness categories as well as criteria for measuring the readiness categories described above.

Evaluating Community Readiness

While a Community Broadband Readiness Self-Assessment may be completed by one individual it is recommended that the process represent the collective knowledge and opinions of the leaders and champions for broadband in the municipality. As with any self-assessment it is important to be as objective as possible in order to provide a fair and honest assessment. The purpose is to inform those involved and to provide a basis for action.

It is assumed that those contributing to the self-assessment already possess sufficient knowledge of broadband and its benefits to effectively provide input to an assessment. Different participating stakeholders may have different knowledge or opinions about the state of readiness across the various categories based on their experience and perspectives. One of the beneficial outcomes of the self-assessment is to identify areas where there is general agreement on readiness – for better or for worse – and areas where there are differing views and opinions. Readiness categories that show low readiness or differences in opinions can reveal areas where some further action may be required.

For this reason it is recommended that a number of interested, informed, and knowledgeable stakeholders be invited to complete the assessment. There is no minimum or maximum number of participants, but getting input from 10 to 20 stakeholders can provide a good set of results to review.

Communities may develop their own methods for gathering readiness inputs or may use one of the readiness assessment tools available.

For information on the Community Readiness Tools available from Strategic Networks Group please visit www.sngroup.com/communityreadiness/ where you will learn about the tools and try out a free version to receive your own readiness report.