Social Accountability of Local Governments in Smart Cities: A Multiple Case Study

Over the years, the international standards for promoting SA-oriented behaviors have been undergoing continuous changes and updates to ensure an appropriate adaptation to the turbulences caused by the emergence of new social events and happenings. This trend, emerging at the level of operating practice, is confirmed by the growing interest in SA expressed by Public Accounting and Management scholars. However, the analysis of the literature highlights the poor attention paid in the study of the SA of LGs involved in smart city projects, although the latter are revolutionizing the way of life of citizens in many countries all over the world. Based on these considerations, the work aims to provide answers to two Research Questions: RQ1: “How ICT-enhanced services and applications for smart cities allow the local governments to be more socially accountable?”; RQ2: “How ICT-enhanced services and applications for smart cities allow the local governments to track the accountability of the stakeholders involved in the administration/management of smart cities?”. The study is based on the analysis of the answers provided by a sample of 56 managers employed in some Italian municipalities involved in smart city projects. The questions were prepared in the form of semi-structured interviews, developed by listing the key variables related to the SA from the Public Management literature: participation; transparency; and monitoring. The results of the analysis suggest that, in addition to the three variables identified in the literature, it is necessary to invest in the stakeholders’ involvement through the implementation of strategies oriented towards Open Data Governance.