A structured method for smart city project selection

The concept of a smart city, based on advanced information and communications technology (ICT), emerged to mitigate the impact of rapid urbanization and was considered feasible. However, the selection of technology and policy for providing better services to citizens and ensuring sustainable development is a multiple-objective decision process that is usually performed by experts in relevant domains. The major goal of this study is to propose a structural method for policy selection, which consists of three phases. In the first phase, the modified Delphi method is used to determine the elements of the decision by surveying panel members for their opinions. In the second phase, an analytic hierarchy process is used to ascertain the priority of each alternative according to the goal of the decision. In the third phase, zero-one goal programming models are developed to select a feasible portfolio based on the political goal and the annual budget. We conducted an empirical study to demonstrate and validate that the proposed model can induce the municipality to consider citizens’ requirements, identify the strengths and weaknesses of proposed policies, and select a feasible project portfolio in response to public expectations. In addition, the study found that a feasible portfolio, including consideration of citizens, business, and the environment, enables the public perceptions of government performance within the resource constraints of the organization.