American Society of Public Administration 

Center for Accountability and Performance

2014 Awards

Joseph W. Wholey Distinguished Scholarship Award – Dr. David N. Ammons

This award is presented annually to an individual(s) for outstanding scholarship on performance in public and nonprofit organizations. The individual(s) must provide a significant contribution to advancing knowledge in a scholarly journal about the development, implementation, use and impact of performance measurement.

Article Selected:  “Signs of Performance Measurement Progress Among Prominent City Governments” (Public Performance Management and Review, June, 2013)

Dr. Ammon’s his article assesses the use of what was referred to as “higher-order” performance measures in municipalities and the extent to which using these higher-order performance measures led to improved performance.  The article was considered to be noteworthy in its attention to further advancing the application of performance information and trying to determine whether it was worth the implementation in terms of achieving greater performance.  The lessons learned and evidence provided are considered useful to advancing the application of performance information in a way that can help other practitioners who might be asking similar questions when designing their own performance system.

Dr. Ammons is the Albert Coates Professor of Public Administration and Government at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.  He writes and teaches about performance measurement, benchmarking, and productivity improvement in local government.

His books on local government management include Municipal Benchmarks (M.E. Sharpe, 2012), Tools for Decision Making: A Practical Guide for Local Government (CQ Press, 2009), and Leading Performance Management in Local Government (ICMA, 2008). 

His articles have appeared in Public Administration Review, American Review of Public Administration, Public Performance and Management Review, State and Local Government Review, Administration and Society, Review of Public Personnel Administration, and other public affairs journals.

 Dr. Ammons has served on the National Performance Management Advisory Commission, the National Council of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA), and the Executive Council of the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA). He was elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration in 2006. Ammons earned a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma.

Award committee chaired by Dr. Richard Beck, U.S. Department of the Interior.

(Below:  John Kamensky, CAP Chair, is presenting Harry Hatry Performance Measurement and Management Practice Award to Jeffrey Tryens, who is skiing on Mt. Hood in Oregon, via iPhone speakerphone).

Harry Hatry Distinguished Performance Measurement and Management Practice Award – Jeffrey Tryens

This award is presented annually to an individual whose outstanding teaching, education, training, and consultation in performance measurement and management has made a significant contribution to the practice of public administration.

Jeffrey Tryens has had a long and distinguished career in public service and has made many significant contributions to the work of managing state and local government on the basis of measurement and proven performance.

Most recently, he serviced as deputy director for Performance Management in the Mayor’s Office of New York City.  In that role, he oversaw work to build on and improve the utility of New York City’s Mayors Management Report a one-of-a-kind document among American cities, which has needed to evolve with times.

Prior to his service in New York City, he was the founder and CEO of Measures Matter, which focused on strategic planning and metrics.  His clients included Metro (Portland, OR), the Columbia River Gorge Commission and the government of South Australia. 

Tryens was intimately familiar with the ethos of South Australia having spent over a year there, designing and leading the community engagement process for implementing South Australia’s strategic plan.  His work there has also been influential on entities in the United States that have made similar efforts. 

In addition, for a ten-year period from 1995 to 2005, he was director of the Oregon Progress Board, which was the state government board responsible for oversight of the State of Oregon’s strategic vision. 

Tryens holds an MPA in public administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Award committee chaired by Richard Greene, Barrett and Greene, Inc.

(Below:  John Kamensky presents the CAP Organizational Leadership Award to CountyStat Director, Dave Gottesman, Montgomery County, MD).

CAP Organizational Leadership Award – CountyStat Program, Montgomery County, Maryland

This award is presented annually to an organization, to recognize outstanding applications of a systems approach to performance measurement that has resulted in a culture change, sustained improvements, and demonstrated positive effects on government performance and accountability.

Montgomery County is located in the Washington DC suburbs and has an incredibly diverse population.  CountyStat, a very well established, traditional PerformanceStat model has been hard at work for the last several years creating a data and results driven culture. Led by their County Executive Ike Leggett, CountyStat has been tackling issues that impact the quality of services provided by the county, public safety, academic excellence, safe housing, transportation and more.  Most decisions from a policy and legislative perspective are first vetted through the rigors of CountyStat.  The results are undeniable – including a 68 percent reduction in pedestrian fatalities, $46 million dollars in overtime cost avoidance, the proliferation and increase of affordable housing stock year over year in one of the most competitive housing markets – and this just scratches the surface of their overall impact on the county. 

A visit to their website allows users to see reams and reams of performance reports that reflect the good work and the results of CountyStat. Perhaps the most compelling aspect of the CountyStat program is their role as a convener for other data driven initiatives.  CountyStat Director, Dave Gottesman, brings together a regular group of metro-area performance managers to discuss best practices, standardize outcome measure and leverage their collective programs.  Montgomery County provides a true example of the type of work we should expect from our awardees. 

Award selection committee chaired by Beth Blauer, Socrata.