Orland Park Mayor Jim Dodge says he’s excited about the potential for artificial intelligence to improve communication between the village and community members, including through a recently launched chatbot.
The bot, named after the village’s first mayor, John Humphrey, will make it easier for residents to get basic questions answered and for staff to keep track of service requests, Dodge said Friday.
“I’m a pretty big believer that we can use technology in ways to improve public service and do it cost-effectively,” Dodge said. “And since I became mayor, it was pretty clear to me that more than a few times, people would call the village or email the village or contact the village, and it would somehow get lost.”
The village officially launched Humphrey last Tuesday to provide access to information on local services, permits, meetings and events at all hours of the day, in more than 70 languages. The bot comes from Citibot, a company that caters its technology to government agencies.
Dodge said more than 80% of village staff use AI in their jobs or personal lives, and he’s embraced the technology’s potential to “keep up a high level of service for affordable costs.”
“There are so many things that we could do faster and better with our current staff, as the village grows,” Dodge said. “That’s what we’re trying to find.”
He said he hopes for as many people as possible to use the chatbot, which greets residents on the village website with a message introducing itself as Humphrey and asking how it can help.
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“For Village information, please type your question,” it says. “You can also call at 708-403-6100.”
Dodge said he hopes as many residents as possible will try out the service and provide feedback, as the bot will improve with training. Village employees have also been directed to monitor Humphrey to make sure it’s providing accurate information.
The chatbot is only the first step in incorporating AI into village services, Dodge said. He is scheduled to present the village’s “adoption plan” for the technology to the Illinois Municipal League in September.
He said he’s not worried about the technology replacing the jobs of village staff, as “you can make your Police Department more efficient using AI, for example, with analytics, but you still need cops.”
“That’s one of the things that’s the challenge with any technology like this — there’s always fears and concerns, right?” he said. “And the reality here is we have to try and find operating efficiencies, because you can’t just keep adding staff to solve problems.”