Even then, strategy is only the first step – it's the implementation that really counts. However, 90 percent of these cities still do not have an integrated Smart City strategy. The number of cities with a clear Smart City strategy has almost doubled in the past two years, rising from 87 to 153.

London comes second in the ranking, but on average, it's mainly Asian metropolises that demonstrate the most compelling Smart City strategies. 'The Austrian capital ranked first because of its integrated framework strategy and innovative solutions for mobility, the environment, education, healthcare and public administration, as well as a system to monitor the progress of the individual projects,' explains Thilo Zelt, a Roland Berger Partner. Vienna tops the index for the second time running. This is one of the findings of the second Smart City Strategy Index, an analysis of 153 cities around the world conducted by the experts from Roland Berger. Urban centers thus need to think integrated if they want to link up individual actions into a successful Smart City strategy. For example, e-mobility services in a Smart City would be integrated into intelligent traffic management systems and powered by smart electricity grids. These problems could be solved with digital technologies embedded in a Smart City strategy. Growing populations, traffic congestion and air pollution are challenges facing cities small and large all over the world.

Global city ranking 2019