Does Mobile Technology Integration Enhance Complaint Resolution Efficiency and Equity? An Empirical Study of How An Omnichannel Approach Affects Speed of Resolution of Government Service Requests

This paper examines how the integration of mobile touchpoints with existing technologies affects the efficiency and equity of crowd-sourcing of non-emergency complaints for cities. We analyze the City of Boston’s effort to integrate multiple technological touchpoints for residents to report non-emergency complaints and request city services. In 2015, Boston integrated its existing citizen app with its phone and website services into a single unified ‘311’ service, where complaints would be handled consistently regardless of submission channel. This was among the first efforts in the U.S. to bring an omnichannel approach to public services. We document that this change had an unexpected effect. Before the omnichannel integration, though the app performed less well than other channels, it actually appeared to provide more equitable service for higher- and lower-income neighborhoods compared to other channels. After the integration, the app’s expanded complaint options led residents to use it more often for code-enforcement complaints against other residents. The mobile app enabled faster resolution of enforcement complaints, especially in wealthier areas with signs of gentrification. We find that this effect can be explained by the fact that residents in richer neighborhoods were more likely to submit multiple enforcement requests on the same day. Complaints that required citations were issued more quickly when the relevant complaints originated from a geographically concentrated area rather than a more diffuse one.