The Path to a Results-Forward Budget

Barrett & Greene (blog by Laura Larsen)

For decades, budget season has followed a familiar script: departments submit requests based on what they received last year, finance and budget teams look for places to trim, and elected officials debate the margins. It’s a process built for stability, not for adapting to fast-moving community needs. The good news is that a different approach is possible.

Better Metrics, Smaller Experiments

Harvard Kennedy School/Data-Smart City Solutions (podcast, 23 min)

This is an interview with Jessica MacLeod, on her new role as chief of strategy and performance for the city of San Francisco. “It’s all about helping our city get really concrete about what the top priorities are, how we define what success looks like and how we create an evidence-based plan to achieve it in creative new ways.” It is also about building a culture and operating norm to get teams to collaborate on solving problems.