Local government: It’s a tough job, but somebody’s gotta do it… with the right tech, of course

Many of us fondly remember the hit sitcom Parks and Recreation, especially the adorable character Leslie Knope, played by the hilarious Amy Poehler, who stopped at nothing to beautify the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. While Leslie persevered and advanced in her career, one key takeaway from the show remains true today: serving in local government is an essential, often thankless job.

Municipalities work hard to keep residents informed about events, community programs, and safety updates—often under tight timelines and even tighter budgets. While much of this work happens behind the scenes, it relies heavily on the right technology. From producing critical printed materials like brochures and multilingual documents to delivering real-time information through digital displays, these tools are vital to effective communication. Yet with so many competing priorities, upgrading technology can often fall to the bottom of the list. When systems fall short, whether it’s a printer delay or outdated display technology, it can directly impact a city’s ability to serve its community. Here are a couple of examples of how local government agencies have technology challenges to better serve their constituents.

Utah DOT and South Carolina DEW Enhance Visibility and Operational Efficiency

In addition to local municipalities, state-level agencies are also modernizing their technology environments to better serve the public, often with measurable gains in efficiency, visibility, and responsiveness.

One strong example is the Utah Department of Transportation. The agency’s Traffic Operations Center plays a critical role in monitoring road conditions, managing incidents, and keeping drivers safe across thousands of miles of highways. Operating 24/7, the center relies heavily on real-time video feeds from more than 1,700 cameras statewide.

However, outdated display technology limited operators’ ability to view and manipulate those feeds effectively. By upgrading to advanced direct-view LED video walls powered by Sharp technology, the agency dramatically improved clarity, flexibility, and control. The new system allows operators to easily route and resize video feeds across multiple screens—delivering the high-resolution visuals and adaptability needed to respond quickly in critical situations.

Similarly, the South Carolina DEW case study highlights how a long-term, phased technology strategy can transform operations across an entire organization. The South Carolina Department of Employment & Workforce (DEW) serves residents through numerous offices statewide and faced challenges with outdated systems, including analog faxing, stand-alone digital signage, and unmanaged print environments.

Working with Sharp, the agency modernized its infrastructure with cloud-based digital signage, secure digital faxing, and a fleet of managed multifunction printers integrated with print management software. These updates streamlined communication, improved security, and reduced manual processes—ultimately saving time and lowering operational costs.

Together, these examples demonstrate that whether it’s improving real-time decision-making in transportation or enabling more efficient service delivery across statewide offices, the right technology investments can have a significant impact on how government agencies operate and serve their communities.

Bringing State-of-the-art tech to Anderson, South Carolina

The South is booming with business and people moving in from around the country, and the city of Anderson, South Carolina, is no exception.

Exponential growth means the city needs to ensure its tech is up to date to stay on par with, or ahead of, other fast-growing business regions. Printing was certainly one issue in Anderson’s government agencies, with MFP devices that were unable to perform simple tasks and would break down when scanning or printing. They also needed a digital document management solution and disaster recovery system to back up the myriad hard copies of essential public works documents, such as engineering plans, stored in filing cabinets. Another major challenge was that the City Council Chamber’s audio/visual studio was still running on analog, resulting in unclear images when broadcasting council proceedings to the public.

The solution was a massive undertaking that involved installing 23 Sharp MFPs and 15 laser printers across the fire department, lawyers’ office, courthouse, mailroom, and several other locations. The city of Anderson also worked with Sharp to install and implement a document management system with a wide-format scanner to digitize large engineering documents, along with backup and disaster recovery services in the event of a fire, flood, or other emergencies. Finally, they solved the analog council chamber problem with an 80” Class (80” diagonal) PN-L703B AQUOS BOARD interactive display system with CAD drawing and overlay mode capabilities. All of the analog cameras, microphones, and monitors were replaced with digital alternatives, making it much easier to publicly broadcast city council meetings.

There are few jobs as rewarding as public service, and we hope that our government employees always have the right technology tools at their disposal to do their jobs effectively with one less thing to worry about. With that, we’ll leave you with a memorable quote from Leslie Knope about the work of public service for the greater good: 

“When we worked here together, we fought, scratched, and clawed to make people’s lives a tiny bit better. That’s what public service is about: small, incremental change every day.” For more information about Sharp's government technology solutions and how they can support your agency's needs, contact a Sharp representative.