A Bipartisan Vote for Better Customer Service

Government Executive

Under a House-passed bill, OMB would create metrics and collect data to measure the quality of service delivery by federal agencies. Agency officials would have to establish their own metrics and work throughout various offices and components to ensure compliance, while also collaborating with the new federal lead at OMB.

A Survey of 1 Million Federal Employee Reflects Low Morale

Washington Post

While some agencies have faltered, the 2023 ratings mark the first government-wide increase since 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc. More than 1 million federal workers from 532 agencies and subcomponents responded to the survey, the greatest response ever in the Best Places rankings.

The Power of Objective Evidence

Urban Institute (Podcast; 25 min.)

Justin Milner, executive vice president of evidence and evaluation at Arnold Ventures, joins Urban Institute executive vice president Kimberlyn Leary for a conversation about the role and challenges of using evidence to shape policy, philanthropy, and learning agendas.

Building a Data-Driven Culture: Three Mistakes to Avoid

MITSloan Management Review

When people resist changing the way they make decisions, well-intentioned data science projects are doomed. Here’s how to overcome key challenges, such as recommendations that were counterintuitive: “The graveyard of data science initiatives is filled with solutions that are advanced, accurate, and well-meaning yet unused.”

Using Foresight to Create the Future We Want

Stanford Social Innovation Review

The future is having a moment. Philanthropic and nonprofit organizations can use the foresight tools long championed by private industry to build more desirable futures for their communities.

Resource of the Week: A Futures Guidebook: A Curriculum for Anticipatory Governance

Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development

OECD identified what is available, what works, and what is still missing in equipping public officials with the tools, mindsets, and practical approaches to build anticipatory innovation into their governance, policy-making, and service delivery work.