ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Do Civil Service Systems Impede Improved Performance?

Careers in Government (op-ed by Howard Risher)

Government performance has been seen as a problem possibly forever, but the federal Department of Government Efficiency has triggered a renewed focus at all levels of government. Recent reports suggest the number of states with similar initiatives is growing. But if history is repeated, the results will not be impressive.

Stuck Between Gut Feel and Data Overload

LinkedIn (David Ndaa)

“One pattern I’ve observed in many organisations — regardless of industry or maturity — is the tension between intuition-led decision-makingand data-heavy systems that yield little insight.”

Do Performance Systems Tied to Budgetary Consequences Weaken Over Times?

Public Management Review (Gated article)

Stringent systems rely on severe standards and consequences as well as the comprehensive measurement of performance. The authors challenge the belief that performance models remain either static or become more rigid and posit that system stringency is a function of learning over time through use. Systems may start as more stringent but stagnate later. The study draws on 16-year panel data on performance-based funding in U.S. higher education.

Resource of the Week:  Anticipatory Governance Guidelines

Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (free download)

Anticipatory governance, which integrates strategic foresight, experimentation and innovation, is essential for navigating today’s complexities and achieving inclusive, people-centered transformations. However, OECD research indicates that the systematic use of anticipatory governance in government is not widespread, and its processes are insufficiently connected with policy development and innovation. This working paper aims to bridge this gap by providing guidance for public organisations on using anticipatory governance to improve resilience and address complex challenges. 

Making Better Use of Data

Governing

Without more certainty about the fate of specific federal funding streams, state governments do not have sufficient information to act in many cases. Nonetheless, there are immediate steps that they can take to be prepared for making budget decisions when the effect of these federal funding changes becomes clearer.

Government-Citizen Interaction in Public Service Performance Assessments

Public Administration

Performance measurement and government‐citizen interactions have been traditionally studied separately in public administration scholarship. To bridge this gap, this article integrates these two bodies of literature, proposing a typology of approaches to government‐citizen interactions in public service performance assessment and highlighting their features.

Analysis of New Public Management and Performance Based Budgeting

Journal of the Knowledge Economy (gated article)

This is a case study of the connection between New Public Management and Performance Based Budgeting as applied in a Chinese Ministry (a stilted English translation, but with conclusions that parallel Western experiences).

Performance Rankings Distracts Attention to Underlying Performance Data

Public Management Review (open access article)

Performance information is often presented in a ranked format. Rankings aggregate a multitude of performance dimensions into an overall score. Simultaneously, rankings may constrain cognitive processing of performance information because they distract users’ attention away from the information underlying the ranking calculation.

How Three Global Organizations Are Measuring Impact

Centre for Public Impact (34:52 minutes – podcast)

This episode of CPI’s Reimagining Government podcast discusses Impact – what it means to different people, how organizations around the globe are measuring impact, and the role legacy should play in measuring impact.

Reclaiming the Gift of Performance Measurement

LinkedIn (Njeri Faith)

This article brings out the deeply human roots of performance measurement -long before KPIs and dashboards. It reminds us that measurement began with instinct and learning, not judgment. [Editor’s Note: a bit of marketing, but this is a beautiful essay!]

Using Data & AI to Make Cities More Efficient & Effective

RouteFifty (Commentary)

If the public sector wants to operate at peak performance, it must harness its data and deploy it across all its functions. Cities across the world are showing what is possible.

What Is “Efficiency?”

Barrett & Greene (Commentary)

“Efficiency” that is centered only around cost savings, without consideration of effectiveness, doesn’t lead to “more and better” service, especially within public agencies.

Pivotal Role of AI in Performance Management

BetterWorks

Managers, tasked with balancing performance evaluations alongside their own responsibilities, frequently struggle to deliver high-impact feedback and guidance. These challenges highlight a pressing need for innovation — and artificial intelligence (AI) in performance management is stepping in to fill the gap.

Performance Budgeting Initiatives and Evidence Use in Public Budgeting

Journal of Educational and Social Research

 This article by Dr. Marsida Ismaili focuses on public budgeting decision-making in Western Balkans countries and on performance-based budgeting initiatives they have undertaken, for an informed and democratic decision-making process.

Harry Hatry’s Contribution to Performance Measurement: A Review of 55 Years of His Work

Japanese Journal of Evaluation Studies

Professor Hiraki Tanaka, a Japanese performance management specialist, has written an article highlighting the contributions of Harry Hatry to the field of Performance Management during his 55 years of writing, research, and consulting. Dr. Tanaka’s review of Dr. Hatry’s work summaries six enduring themes that characterizes his pioneering contributions to the field.

Does Performance Change Budget?

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting, & Financial Management (ElaineYi Lu, Robert Hines, Katherine Willoughby)

How performance informs budgeting and budgets is contentious and unclear. By reviewing media articles over a 20-year period, and the budget trends of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, this research demonstrates that performance information, and media attention to it, leads to meaningful, if not immediate, budgetary change.

Capturing Performance Opportunities in State and Local Governments

McKinsey Co., blog

State and local governments in the United States often face a host of funding and workforce challenges, but taking six actions can boost operating performance.