ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Measuring & Encouraging Performance Info in Government

World Bank (Donald Moynihan)

The existence of government analytics does not ensure its use. This chapter dis­cusses how governments can measure the use of government analytics—or, in other words, conduct analyt­ics on government analytics.

User Accountability in Contracting Out

Journal of Public Administration and Theory

How does contracting out affect service performance? Evidence to date is mixed. We argue that this is partially due to prior studies focusing often on whether—not how—services are contracted. Yet, how services are contracted matters.

Where Did Pandemic Dollars Go?

SubStack/Liz Farmer

Per a new GAO report on state-local spending of $350 Billion in Recovery Act monies, in some places, the money is nearly gone while other governments haven’t even touched their stash. And $606 million is totally unaccounted for.

New Problem-Solving Skills All Cities Need

Stanford Social Innovation Review

 If public officials are to effectively address our biggest global concerns—while also managing local challenges and the interplay between the two—they’ll need to expand their skill set to include “problem-solving capabilities.” Skills, mindsets, and practices are needed in four critical areas.

Invoice-Stat: Baltimore

The Baltimore Banner

Baltimore’s Department of Finance is steadily chipping away at the extensive backlog of outstanding invoices it owes to goods and services suppliers, thanks to the implementation of a new software system that is gradually transforming how the city runs.

RatStat: New York City

The Economist (paywalled)

Using crime fighting tactics, like CompStat, the city takes on its rats and rubbish.

Resource of the Week:  The Government Analytics Handbook

World Bank

This free handbook presents frontier evidence and practitioner insights on how to leverage data to make governments work better. Covering a range of microdata sources—such as administrative data and public servant surveys—as well as tools and resources for undertaking the analytics, it transforms the ability of governments to take a data-informed approach to diagnose and improve how public organizations work.

Three Reasons to Avoid Using Indexes and Scores

YouTube (4:14 min.)

Stacey Barr

You might think that rolling up your performance measures or KPIs into a weighted score or composite index is a great strategy to simplify your dashboard, to deal with lots of measures, or to create proxies for intangible goals. Think again. They hide the real problem of too many measures, they hide the real signals of change, and they hide the results you are trying to monitor. 

What Counts as Evidence in the Eyes of Policymakers?

Public Administration Review

What counts as evidence depends on the context, the nature of the questions that are being addressed, and the evidence that is available. Policy actors’ perceptions of what counts as evidence often change as their careers progress, and are influenced by the roles they take on, the organizations they work in, and the policy issues they work on.

Federal Agencies Can Better Measure Performance of Innovation Offices

U.S. Government Accountability Office

Federal regulators of financial institutions have offices dedicated to financial innovation and technology, but they don’t have performance goals and measures for this work. GAO offers recommendations for action.

Seven Things to Know About Outcome-Based Contracting

Centre for Public Impact

The evidence shows that outcome-based contracting (sometimes called outcome-based performance management or payment by results) doesn’t produce good outcomes in real life. This article lists seven things you should know about outcomes-based contracting based on the extensive research evidence about these practices.

WEBINAR: Attacks on Auditor Independence (Thursday, Oct. 5, 1 p.m. Eastern)

ASPA Center on Accountability & Performance

There is a perennial threat to auditor independence at the state and local levels. A panel of veteran practitioners take attendees behind the scenes to better understand the need for independence and the difficulty some have in preserving it.

Evidence 2.0: The Next Era of Evidence-Based Policymaking

Stanford Social Innovation Review

It has been five years since the passage of the Evidence Act. While most federal agencies have created fairly robust evidence bases, unlocking that evidence for practical use by decision makers remains challenging. One might argue that if Evidence 1.0 was focused on the production of evidence, then the next five years—let’s call it Evidence 2.0—will be focused on the effective use of that evidence. 

Explore the September 2023 Agency Priority Goal Updates

U.S. Office of Management & Budget

Two years ago, federal agencies committed to 85 “priority goals” with a series of milestones to be completed by September 30, 2023. This set of progress updates cover the April-June 2023 period. The final progress reports for the two-year goals will be released in early 2024.

What Happens When We Measure People?

YouTube (5:15 min.)

Stacey Barr says you can’t prove that measuring and monitoring people’s performance actually improves the performance of the organization.

The Promising Evolution of Performance Management

Governing/Kennedy School

Nowhere in the U.S. can we better see the evolution and promise of local government performance programs than in Washington, D.C., thanks in no small part to the work of City Administrator Kevin Donahue. His career evolution parallels the evolution of the “-Stat” movement.

How Data Conversations Can Address Pressing Challenges

RouteFifty
Faced with water shortages, Henderson, Nevada, has turned to a data-driven approach to solve it. It’s now rolling out its approach to other departments citywide.

The Emerging Challenge of Budgeting and Performance

Government Finance Research Center

We tend to budget by agency and then, typically, by program within the agency. However, the actual implementation of almost every program depends on complex networks involving multiple programs, agencies, levels of government, sectors of society, and even foreign governments. The flow of action needs to make connections among all these pieces, but the flow of budget decisions typically doesn’t match up.

Connecting the Dots: Rethinking Data Systems to Improve Outcomes

Results for America

There are inspiring pockets of work happening around the country that show the potential for integrating data across sectors and over time to achieve better outcomes.

Using Citywide Data Strategies to Connect Dots, Drive Results

Bloomberg Cities Network

Data is more central than ever to improving service delivery, managing performance, and identifying opportunities that better serve residents. That’s why a growing number of cities are adding a new tool to their arsenal—the citywide data strategy.

How Data Literacy Improves Decision-Making

State Tech Magazine

 Governments must increase data literacy across a broader set of employees so that anyone who interacts with data can be proficient in understanding it and using it to inform leaders and affect policy decisions.

The OMB Evidence Team (Podcast Interview, 39 min.)

Mathmatica

From helping lead implementation of the Evidence Act to providing technical assistance on activities and initiatives, the Evidence Team at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is on the frontlines of evidence building and use across the federal government.

Why Do Public Agencies Seek Accountability?

Public Administration Journal (open access)

Accountability-seeking behaviors of public agencies are said to be motivated, among others, by attempts at pre-empting stricter mandatory provisions, logic of appropriateness motives, Machiavellian opportunism, reputational considerations, and a perceived need to compensate for the inadequacy of traditional arrangements.

Improvements in Employee Performance Management Over Time

Public Management Review (paywalled)

Co-authors Hyung-Woo Lee and Peter J. Robertson find that US federal employees’ perceptions of appraisal fairness and feedback quality increased from 2010-2019, as did the strength of the relationship between employee performance management and work effort.

Resource of the Week:  Florida PolicyNotes

Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability

PolicyNotes is a free electronic newsletter highlighting OPPAGA publications and other reports from the Florida Legislature, state and federal government reports, think tank research, website resources, and other sources for policy research and program evaluation. OPPAGA provides this weekly publication as an information service to bring attention to issues of interest to Florida policymakers.

WEBINAR: Did American Rescue Plan Further Evidence & Performance Practices? (Tues., Sept 19, 1 p.m. Eastern)

ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

 Have the requirements for evidence-based approaches and annual performance reporting enhanced state and local performance management and reporting? Hear from U.S. Treasury and local government representatives as they discuss the challenges and opportunities around this unprecedented infusion of federal dollars.

Congressional “What Works” Caucus Launched

Results for America

Four Members of Congress (2-D, 2-R) launched the bipartisan What Works Caucus to ensure that federal taxpayer dollars are invested as effectively and efficiently as possible to improve outcomes for children, families, and communities nationwide.

Lessons from the Front Line of Change

PATimes

Andrew Kleine describes the practical lessons he learned in radically transforming the City of Baltimore’s budget system to be more evidence-based.

How to Do Strategic Planning Like a Futurist

Harvard Business Review

Here’s a framework for thinking strategically about the short-term and long-term at the same time. “Visioning” meetings are not a substitute for critical thinking about the future. 

Government Can Deliver: An Interview

Federal News Networks

This interview highlights Richard Spires’ practitioner’s guide which presents a framework for government agency performance improvement designed to change an inefficient culture and drive operational excellence. It outlines how government leaders can drive such change, and most importantly, it presents a proven approach for creating an environment that will affect positive change

Resource of the Week:  Checklist for Launching a Randomized Evaluation in the U.S.

J-PAL North America

 This Evaluation Toolkit includes resources ranging in focus from how to assess feasibility and interest with an implementing partner to resources for structuring file and code in ongoing evaluations.