Case Study: Centro de Integracion Ciudadana

@CICmty Robbery in Lazaro Cardenas and Laubner gas station next to Valle Oriente
Galleria. Witnesses confirm kidnapping of gas dispatchers. [Translation from Spanish]

@CICmty Twitter - 11:37am - August 25, 2011

In 2009, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon’s capital, was considered one of the best cities to live in Latin
America. Monterrey has traditionally been an important industrial hub, home to many leading
companies in Mexico such as CEMEX, FEMSA, Vitro and Grupo Alfa. Back then, Monterrey
had one of the lowest homicide rates in Latin America of 5.75 per 100,000 inhabitants. By
2011, as a result of drug-related crimes, the homicide rate surged to 41.75 per 100,000
inhabitants. The number of kidnappings increased from 13 in 2009 to 61 in 2011. (See Table
1). The crown city of northern Mexico had been reached by organized crime. Nine out of ten
citizens distrusted authorities and citizen participation rate was merely 5%. Other root causes
that contributed to the insecurity problem in the 2009 - 2011 period included but were not
limited to: low morale in the police force (compensation) and a weak justice system (% of
reported crimes was very low).

In 2010, Centro de Integración Ciudadana (CIC) was established as a non-profit operated

entirely by citizens to serve as a bridge-mechanism between citizens and government. CIC
leveraged on Twitter to create a citizen-network in which anyone could report and inform of
any event that posed a danger to society. Twitter was a free, transparent, easy and fast
communication channel for all citizens. CIC’s operating model includes a human-layer of
agents that are key to the Center’s functions. First, they engage in real conversations with
fellow-citizens to create or follow-up on security reports or any other information of interest in
city-related matters. Second, they channel reports to the responsible authority. Third, they
create, categorize and geolocate reports in the CIC platform to develop actionable intelligence.
CIC also enables citizens to report anonymously. In sum, CIC became the point-of-contact for
reports sent to authorities with the intent for citizens to report with confidence.

CIC’s utmost interest was for citizens to participate with information related to crime-
prevention. Hence, the need for crime-related categories like kidnapping, car thefts, suspicious
and abandoned homes were included in scope. Public work categories like potholes, garbage
and public lighting were strategically considered since helping fix these everyday needs to
citizens became small steps to start gaining confidence and traction with citizens.
Furthermore, based on the “broken-windows” theory, a cleaner and better-kept city should
decentivize crime. By 2019, CIC agents had managed over 380,000 citizen reports. Today,
crime-related reports represent only 8% of total reports, yet very sensitive information is still
being gathered. Security authorities welcome CIC’s efforts as information shared by CIC many
times is not reported directly by citizens to the police. Additionally, CIC’s information has
supported resolution of crimes in the past.

CIC became a successful social venture with an accelerated growth. Reports grew in average
50% yearly from 2012 to 2018. In 2013, Jack Dorsey publicly acknowledged with a Tweet that
CIC was an “amazing use of Twitter” and a “Citizen-driven safety reporting for Monterrey,

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Mexico”. (See Figure 1) Twitter followers grew organically 230% from 2014 to 2019 reaching
230,000 followers and becoming one of the largest non-profit Twitter accounts in Mexico. To
reach other audiences, Facebook and Whatsapp were added as citizen-report channels in
2016 and Instagram in 2019. In 2014, CIC received Eric Schmidt’s New Age Digital Grant and
landed in 7th place in the United Nations Open Government Awards. In 2015, Motorola
recognized CIC’s technological efforts with a grant. CIC has been featured as a an important
contribution during Monterrey’s worst crime era in The Economist, Foreign Policy, the New
York Times, The Huffington Post and El Pais (See Figure 2, Figure 3 and Figure 4). CIC
opened autonomous Chapters in Coahuila in 2015 and in Puebla in 2016. CIC has signed
collaboration agreements with over 50 authorities including municipalities and local, state and
federal security institutions. Additionally, CIC has had a seat in security and crime-prevention
councils at a municipal and state level in Nuevo Leon. Furthermore, CIC has been invited on
several occasions to present its model to Mexico’s National Security Commission (CNS).

Mexico is in deep need of public participation to generate social change. While CIC’s model
has evolved significantly and has proven value, future challenges include scalability,
standardization and increased citizen empowerment. After eight years in operations, CIC’s
Board of Directors and top management are questioning CIC’s strategic plan. The team has
decided to rely on Moore’s Strategic Triangle for public value as a decision tool to define what
the next steps in the organization (See Figure 5).

CIC’s Social and Public Value

By leveraging social media and technology, CIC became a credible mechanism to rebuild trust
between citizens and authorities, as opposed to the often bureaucratic, low-quality and
distrusting reporting mechanisms that often existed across Latin America. CIC incentivizes
and captures citizen reports, enables a fast-track resolution channel and informs citizens about
relevant events that can impact life in the city. Through this process, CIC empowers citizens
to demand their rights and engage as part of the solution of any issue or challenge that
threatens or diminishes quality of life.

CIC’s social value has also transcended with citizens using the network in different contexts
that CIC founders had not envisioned. Take for instance, citizens using CIC’s networks to
monitor traffic within the city or security issues in federal roads. @CICmty also has served as
an official communication channel to communicate preventive measures and to alienate
disinformation during dreadful events such as hurricanes and thunderstorms. CIC’s social
networks are also commonly used to search for missing persons whether it might be an elder
with dementia or a potentially kidnapped person. Community becomes more resilient as CIC’s
social networks grow.

CIC’s has emerged as a mechanism for citizens to engage for the greater good in a country
where citizen participation is rare. Ongoing social problems in Mexico have caused apathy
from society. Voter turnout, the main metric of political participation, was merely 33% during
the 2019 State-level elections. According to the Global Barometer Surveys 2018 1, Mexicans

1
Globalbarometer.net. (2019). Global Barometer Surveys. [online] Available at:
https://www.globalbarometer.net/

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psychological involvement in politics is 34% (a measure of how frequently they discuss politics
and their understanding) and political participation is 42% (a measure of practices like voting,
association for civic purposes and participation in a protest march). In the 2016 Global Civic
Engagement Report2, Mexico obtained 26 points out of 100 in the Civic Engagement Index,
the lowest ranked Latin American country just after Venezuela. The index assesses people’s
inclination to give their money, time or assistance to others in need.

CIC is a tool that can help society to continuously participate and help build better institutions.
Mexican society has been mostly passive and permissive, in some cases even complacent.
For example, corruption levels in Mexico skyrocketed without society taking a stance against
it. Mexico is ranked 138 of 180 countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency
International3. As a vicious cycle, it is this same corruption that has triggered distrust in
institutions. The most reliable institutions for Mexicans are the Navy and the Army with 90%
and 87% of trust from citizens, respectively. Yet, at least five of every ten Mexicans believe
the newly-formed National Guard is corrupt, and seven of every ten Mexicans believe judges
and transit police are corrupt4.

CIC is also a free and democratized mechanism in which citizens can be part of the solution.
In Mexico, citizens usually believe their problems should be solved by elected officials.
According to Latinobarometer5, Mexicans’ support for democracy is only 38%; 11% believe an
authoritarian government is preferable and 38% is indifferent to the type of government.
However, when it comes to natural disasters as earthquakes, Mexicans turn to solidarity and
participation to help those in distress. Some scholars believe our democracy and civil society
was born thanks to the resulting citizen engagement after Mexico City’s earthquake in 1985.
It seems that Mexicans civic engagement is triggered by tragic events, but constant
engagement in needed.

Operational Means and Capacities

With eight years of experience, CIC has amassed a collection of tools, processes and
agreements to excel in its operation and expand to new geographies. When it comes to social
media as the means to manage citizen reports, CIC has defined processes, protocols, quality
controls and metrics. On several occasions, governmental institutions have turned to CIC for
advice and for best-practices on how to handle social media to attend citizen demands.
Constant evolution of these capabilities include the current incorporation of ‘bots’.

CIC developed in-house CIVIX, a scalable and configurable citizen management system (See
Figure 7, 8 and 9 for system screenshots). The system includes 1) mobile applications in
Android and iOS, 2) CRM to create, categorize and follow-up on reports, 3) Mapping and

2
2016 Global Civic Engagement. (2016). Gallup, Inc.
3
Transparency International (2019). Corruption Perceptions Index 2018. [online] Available at:
https://www.transparency.org/cpi2018#summary
4
INEGI (2019). National Survey of Victimization and Perception on Public Security. Available at:
https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/programas/envipe/2019/doc/envipe2019_presentacion_nacional.
pdf
5
Latinobarometro (2019). Latinobarometer Report 2018. Available at: www.latinobarometro.org ›
INFORME_2018_LATINOBAROMETRO

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analysis with powerful filters and predefined analysis reports such as heat maps, before-and-
after comparisons and tendency. CIVIX enables to setup CIC’s in new geographies in less
than a week, with “tropicalized” categories and with no programming needed. CIC
engagement processes with local, state and federal instances are helpful resources to operate
in current geographies or when expanding to new locations.

CIC has signed collaboration agreements with over 50 authorities including municipalities and
local, state and federal security institutions. CIC has signed agreements with all municipalities
in Monterrey’s metropolitan area: Monterrey, San Pedro, Guadalupe, San Nicolas, Santa
Catarina, Escobedo and Apodaca. Additionally, CIC has had a seat in security and crime-
prevention councils at a municipal and state level in Nuevo Leon. For example, CIC
participates in the Citizen Security State Council as well as in the State Crime Prevention
Council and Guadalupe Crime Prevention Committee. Furthermore, CIC has been invited on
several occasions to present its model to Mexico’s National Security Commission (CNS). Yet,
CIC still needs to work on capacities on how to further involve the private sector.

Legitimacy and Support

CIC is a non-profit legally established institution in Nuevo Leon. CIC has gained respect due
to its experience, professionalism and operational proficiency (see Figure 6 for CIC’s
Stakeholder Map). CIC was established with CEMEX support which legitimized the effort since
its inception. As of today, CEMEX still represents 90% of annual funding. Since 2011, CEMEX
has funded CIC with an annual budget of $12 million Mexican pesos. Constant funding from
CEMEX has brought steadiness to CIC’s operations, yet by 2018 in real-terms funding was
31.5% less than in 2011. CIC carries the stigma of many executives in the non-profit sector
thinking that CIC is “owned” by CEMEX. In 2018, the CIC Board of Directors accepted the
need to start seeking other sponsors, but CIC has not yet developed this competency.

CIC has a growth plan in place with specific costs and milestones. To accomplish the growth
plan, funding from other sponsors is certainly required. CIC is working on a new governance
model to legitimize its effort at a national level. CIC Board of Directors is constituted by the
CIC President and four other Directors, all of them having a direct or indirect relationship with
CEMEX. CIC’s articles of incorporation includes an Advisory Board as the figure to support
and align the vision between Board of Directors and management. The Advisory Board
operated intermittently between 2013 and 2016 and stopped sessioning in 2016 due to its
inconsistency. Re-launching the Advisory Board with the inclusion of respected experts could
help gain further legitimacy. See Figure 12 for CIC’s organizational chart.

CIC has matured the relationship with authorities in Nuevo Leon by signing official
collaboration agreements and by being propositive. CIC distinguishes from other institutions
by omitting “finger-pointing” authorities to attract media attention. Non-confronting authorities
is seen by other non-profits as “soft” or “taking side with government”, but CIC sees is as the
means for citizens and government to build together a better tomorrow. Another barrier has
been for governments to see CIC as a threat invading their faculties. Yet, CIC openly states
its intent to complement and not substitute the authority. This system has opened government
to collaborate everyday more with CIC in Nuevo Leon.

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Some stakeholders in government also see CIC as a threat based on the information it gathers
that can be politically exploited. Suspicious from government is common when arriving to new
geographies. Hence, the importance for CIC not to engage in political matters. On the same
instance, CIC has been able to transcend local governments transitions and works with
governments led by different political parties. This level of respect and relationship takes time
to build.

CIC has a good relationship with the media. CIC has become an important news source for
reporters. Events that ultimately turn into news are identified in average 40 minutes before
going public. Additionally, reporters and journalists also relate CIC as a transparent data
source. News reporters use CIC crowdsourced data in topics ranging from security to the
quality of the city roads. With this scheme, CIC enables news outlets, researchers and citizens
to use data to demand solutions to public issues, while CIC maintains a neutral stance towards
the authority.

CIC Categories

CIC in Nuevo Leon specializes in managing citizen reports in five main topics: security,
prevention, public works, mobility, and citizen proposals (see Table 2 for report distribution).
Security-related categories include domestic violence, abandoned houses and vehicles,
missing persons, extortion, graffitti, homicides, kidnapping, thefts, risk situations, suspicious
activities and findings from search warrants. Prevention-related categories include structural
damages, fireworks, fires, emergencies, gas leaks and floods. While public works covers a
wide array of public services, citizens mainly report potholes, public lighting and sewers.
Mobility reports are related to car accidents and traffic jams. Citizen proposals can be done in
regards to topics such as air pollution, security, urban infrastructure and public transport.

CIVIX has the capability to assign topics and categories in any given geography as well as
turning on and off categories in specific time periods. CIC management defines categories in
four types. First, CIC model categories are categories that CIC covers from its origin and
usually represent daily problems to citizens. Resolving those issues to citizens creates trust
and traction thus growing the network. The most common example are public work categories.
Second, are local categories which refer to categories that are of special interest in a specific
region, state or municipality. For example, CIC Puebla covers Puebla police abuse, public
transportation or water shortage as specific categories. Third, cross-section categories which
relates to nationwide or regional issues as for example security in Mexico. Fourth, conjuntural
categories which are turned on and off on specific time periods and geographies. Conjuntural
categories are commonly used for dreadful events such as hurricanes or earthquakes or for
disruptive events such as the gasoline shortage period in early 2019.

CIC has a process to add new categories to scope. First, potential categories are identified
either as a result of reports or a proposal from stakeholders. Second, CIC management team
analyzes the impact of adding the category. The team resolves if the category is in line with
CIC’s values and operational scope. Also, management reviews if there are any legal
implications and if there are other better means for resolution to the issue at hand. Once that
category has been accepted for addition, CIC works at an operational level to identify and

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engage with the authority that is competent in resolving the issue, understand the resolution
path for such report, define process and protocols and finally train agents. Once, the team is
ready to resolve reports, the category is turned on in CIVIX and promoted in CIC’s social
networks.

Specializing in specific categories has several advantages. CIC has created trust with citizens
by bringing solutions. To bring a solution to a report, CIC first needs to engage with the
authority that has the competence to resolve that issue in the first place. Hence, this initial
engagement and maturing the relationship is easier when focused on specific issues.
Additionally, agents become experts on resolving these issues and as the spectrum of
categories broadens, agents roles become more complex, time-consuming and costly.
Additionally, when CIC specializes in a specific topic it becomes a social referral in that topic.
For example, CIC is usually invited to participate in municipal and state councils related to
security, transparency and mobility. Yet, Mexico is a diverse country and thus the potential of
local categories. As CIC expands, it could attain the most important issues in every State
sacrificing the benefits of specialization.

The challenge for the Board of Directors is to define if CIC should attain new categories in new
geographies (see Figure 10 for potential categories by State). There are three different
scenarios on the table: 1) Grow with the same model in other geographies and become highly
specialized; 2) Add only cross-section categories as they should also be important for new
locations; 3) Include local categories in every location CIC operates.

Growth Model

From 2011 to 2019, CIC replicated only in Coahuila and Puebla. The replication model was
based on a franchise-like model. To implement a CIC Chapter, CIC grants a local non-profit
the use of CIC trademark, enables social networks, gives training to local agents, sets-up
CIVIX modules and gives permission to use promotional material. Cost to open a Chapter
lowered between Coahuila and Puebla from $15,000 USD to $3,000 USD. Annual fees are
used to sustain servers, emails and other technological features. To make the model more
attractive, annual fees decreased from $28,500 USD in 2014 to $6,000 USD in 2016. Yet,
operational costs to run a local Chapter per year stands at $125,000 USD as each Chapter
requires to have its own staff, agents, office and promotion.

In 2018, CIC Board of Directors defined the need to replicate CIC at a national level. CIC had
already been working on a scalable solution (CIVIX) which was ready to replicate CIC
Chapters in less than a week rather than in a 4-month period. CIVIX also reduced support for
all CIC Chapters in one-same platform. Even solving the technological barriers, the complexity
to hire new teams to setup local Chapters plus the cost to run the Center in every location
brings doubt to local sponsors. As a result, CIC management team proposed a new centralized
model. The model is a turn-key solution that centralizes report handling and promotion on CIC
headquarters and only requires to have State Directors to represent CIC locally. This easeses
the implementation of the model to interested parties. Additionally, it reduces costs by having
double-functions in local Chapters as for example administrative staff, accounting and IT.
Specialization and service volume also brings the opportunity to have economies of scale with
agents managing citizen reports. Centralized publicity team alings CIC communication agenda

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and also generates cost-savings for the production of content and publicity made in social
media.

Management believes that a centralized model is the best way to replicate CIC nationwide.
Costs and annual objectives for every State in Mexico have been defined. CIC has the
potential to reach 18 million users by 2024. Cost estimates to run a nationwide operation in
2024 are of $6.4 million USD which averaged evenly between Mexico’s 32 States equals
$200,000 USD per year. CIC is currently seeking sponsorship per State to start opening CIC
Chapters under the centralized model. Guanajuato and Oaxaca governors have shown
interest in CIC to empower citizens in security matters and build trust.

Competition

By 2015, CIC became a referent in Mexico with other organizations seeking a similar purpose
through the use of social media. There are not many cases like CIC. The organization
continues to lead the markets where it operates and is occasionally invited to pitch in many
States in Mexico. Nonetheless, there is one case that deems attention. Supercivicos is
established in Mexico City. Supercivicos gathers citizen reports using video and “finger-
pointing” these to authorities. Supercivicos has created characters to make mockery about
conditions in the city. For example, they take a bath in city potholes or characterize The
Beatles’ Abbey Road album cover to stop traffic. This approach has gained them 1.4 million
Facebook likes, 235 K Twitter followers and 347 K YouTube subscribers. Supercivicos differs
from CIC`s non-confronting and process-driven operations and keeps gaining attention from
the public.

Publicity and Promotion

CIC mainly grows organically in its social networks. Challenges to grow the network at a faster
pace includes that CIC avoids controversy and its content is entirely civic-driven. Additionally,
everyday new influencers pop-up in social media. Influencers can be seen as an opportunity
to endorse CIC. Yet, many influencers are usually controversial, thus alignment with CIC
values is another barrier. Above all, publicity driven with influencers is costly. As for
campaigning in traditional media, CIC lives in the social media space, so while traditional
media might help increase trademark recognition it might not end up with more users in CIC
social networks or more CIVIX app downloads. Likewise, traditional campaigning are costly.
CIC promotional investment per year averages $100,000 USD.

Social Media in Mexico

As more people are connecting to the Internet, social media is becoming a must and a platform
for civic engagement. From 2009 to 2019, Internet users in Mexico have grown from 30.6 to
82.7 million users. Social media is no longer the hype, but a habit for Mexicans, with a 65% of
Internet penetration, according to Asociación de Internet MX. A 2018 Report on Media Usage
by Millward Brown and Televisa shows that 93% of Mexican Internet users use Facebook,

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79% YouTube, 42% Google+, and 40% Twitter. The 14th Study on the Habits of Internet Users
in Mexico (2018) also points out that 98% use Facebook, 91% WhatsApp, 82% YouTube, 57%
Instagram and 49% Twitter. Finally, a study by Comunicación Política Aplicada (CPA) shows
the most used social media networks by Mexicans are Facebook (99% - 81 million Mexicans),
WhatsApp (93% - 77 million Mexicans), followed by Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
According to CPA, young people between 21 and 30 years old are the main users of Facebook
and WhatsApp, while 14-20 years old is the age rank of Instagram and YouTube main users.

Security in Mexico Today

Security is still a top of mind topic for most Mexicans. As reported by INEGI 6, in 2019, 78.9%
of Mexicans feel insecure at country-level. In Nuevo Leon, 81.7% of people feel insecure at
state-level. According to official numbers, Mexico has reported 28,741 intentional homicides
in the first ten months of 2019, almost 100 homicides per day. At this rate, Mexico's murder
rate will hit record in 2019 (see Table 3).

Mexico’s first leftist President, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has ignited further polarization
in society. The new Federal government’s security strategy is failing as crime rates keep rising
and major security events have caught the United States’ attention: 1) the release of “El
Chapo” Guzmán son and 2) LeBaron family massacre in Sonora.

Conclusion

After a long discussion between CIC Board of Directors and top management, it has been
decided to bring in The Triangle Consulting firm to help define CIC’s 2020 - 2030 strategic
plan. The Board has requested consultants to answer the following questions:

1. How would you summarize CIC’s social value? Do you think it has changed since its
inception? Do you think it has to be re-defined?
2. How can CIC further exploit its capabilities to maximize its social value?
3. What actions do you recommend CIC to increase its legitimacy and support?
4. Do you think CIC is in the stage to replicate nationwide? If not, what do you think is
missing?
5. Do you think the centralized model proposed by CIC management team is the most
effective growth strategy? Why?
6. Do you think CIC should specialize on certain citizen report categories or should it
broaden its spectrum? What are the implications of doing one or the other?
7. Do you think CIC should continue to work hand-in-hand with authorities or become a
confronting actor? Why?
8. What would you suggest CIC to grow its presence in social media?
9. What recommendations would you give to CIC management team on how to
incentivize citizen participation?
10. How does the current new political context affect CIC’s objectives?

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INEGI (2019). Public security perception. Available at: https://www.inegi.org.mx/temas/percepcion/

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Table 1. High-impact crime rates in Nuevo Leon (State-level) and Mexico (Country-
level)

Source: Secretariado Ejecutivo Nacional, Mexico.

Figure 1. Jack Dorsey’s Twitter.

Source: https://twitter.com/jack/status/400267012766593024

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Figure 2. @CICmty in Casino Royale tragedy

Full Article: https://elpais.com/internacional/2011/08/26/actualidad/1314309610_850215.html

Source: https://twitter.com/Cicmty/status/106844233192845312

Source: https://twitter.com/Cicmty/status/107098204599889921

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Figure 3. CIC in Foreign Policy

Source: Foreign Policy, 2013, No. 203

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Figure 4. CIC in The Huffington Post

Source: The Huffington Post

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Figure 5. Moore’s Strategic Triangle

Source: Moore, M. (2000). Managing for Value: Organizational Strategy in for-Profit, Nonprofit, and
Governmental Organizations. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 29(1_suppl), pp.183-204.

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Figure 6. CIC Stakeholder Map

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Table 2. Report distribution from January 1 2018 to October 13 2019

Source: CIC

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Figure 7. Screenshots CIVIX App

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cic.com.cicty&hl=es
iOS: https://apps.apple.com/mx/app/civix/id1332870646

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Figure 8. Screenshots CIVIX analysis (https://analisis.civix.mx/)

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Figure 9. CIVIX CRM Module (https://crm.civix.mx/login)

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Figure 10. Potential categories by State

Source: INEGI, media outlets and local universities’ studies

Figure 11. CIC Nuevo Leon social networks and App cumulative growth

Source: CIC

Table 3. Perception of Insecurity as a percentage of total population aged 18 and

above.

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Mexico 69.5 66.6 72.3 73.3 73.2 72.4 74.3 79.4 78.9
(Country-level)

Nuevo Leon 84.6 86.7 80.2 73.0 70.7 73.5 71.1 75.1 81.7
(State-level)

Source: INEGI

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Figure 12. CIC Organizational Chart

Source: CIC

Figure 13. CIC - Tigres “Hagamos equipo por nuestra ciudad” campaign

Source: https://www.tigres.com.mx/nota/se-hace-equipo-por-nuestra-ciudad/

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