ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Evidence and Evaluation
Federal Data Strategy to impact all feds, not just ‘data plans for data wonks’
Jory Heckman, Federal News Network
The Chief Data Officer council met on the first time Friday to discuss implementation of the Federal Data Strategy, including building a data-centric workforce.
NSF Tech Leader Aims for a Data-Savvy, Innovation-Focused Workforce
Brandi Vincent, Nextgov
Dorothy Aronson, the National Science Foundation’s chief information officer and chief data officer, discusses shaping the data literacy of the agency’s workforce.
Future of Federal Data Strategy Will Include Informing Citizens About How Their Data Is Used
Aaron Boyd, Nextgov
As agencies share more data between departments, the administration will develop a framework and tools for citizens to manage how their personal information is used.
How to make data a resource for every mission
Jason Miller, Federal News Network
Agencies need to transform by encouraging an agile approach, by taking smart risks and reskilling their workforces to understand what it takes for change to take hold.

Management
In new book, former Gov. O’Malley makes case for tracking performance with data
John Thomas Flynn, Federal News Network
Former Governor of Maryland, Martin O’Malley, discusses his experience implementing performance measurement and the importance of the Chief Information Officer role at the state level.
Reducing Administrative Burden, aka ‘Death by a Thousand 10-Minute Tasks’
John Kamensky, Government Executive
Since 1991, the federal government has imposed 110 new requirements on university research grant recipients.
MSPB Questions Value of Performance Evaluations
FEDweek
Federal agencies “may need to reconsider both the purpose(s) of and how they are conducting performance evaluation,” the MSPB has said.

Collaboration
Report: Federal Agencies Must Be ‘Better Connected, More Collaborative’ 
Courtney Buble, Government Executive
Agencies need to work together and with the private sector to improve how they manage systems, data and their workforces, researchers say.

Evidence and Evaluation
The Evidence-Based Policy Revolution Waiting to Happen
Andy Feldman and Rebecca Maynard, Government Executive
Government decision makers need to know more than whether a program works. They also need to know whether it’s cost-effective.
How data drives IT delivery at State
Mark Rockwell, FCW
The State Department is almost a year into a program that uses data analysis to set IT capabilities at its posts worldwide, according to its CIO.
Will 2020 Be the Year of Data?
Juliana Vida, Nextgov
Agencies across the federal government are beginning to recognize the importance of data and data-driven decision-making.
New Federal Data Strategy draws from evidence-based policymaking act
Tom Temin, Federal News Network
The administration recently came out with an updated Federal Data Strategy that included some recommendations from the Data Coalition, whose president, Nick Hart, joined Federal Drive to discuss more.
How the evolution of big data analytics improves agency mission outcomes
FedScoop Radio
Harnessing data in motion expands the public sector’s ability to make more intelligent decisions and deliver services more effectively, say data experts.

Management
The Individuals Behind Government’s Success Stories
John Kamensky and Dan Chenok, Government Executive
The recent history of government reforms provides important lessons for leaders.
Does strategic planning help organizations?
Steve Kelman, FCW
The author notes growing support for strategic planning efforts — and the steps agencies take to keep those plans relevant.
DHS tests AI for making sense of contractor past-performance data
Dave Nyczepir, FedScoop
DHS has a project that will allow agencies to use AI for analyzing and visualizing underutilized data on contractor performance.

Customer Service
Reimagining Citizen Services in the Government in 2025
Martha Dorris, Nextgov
As citizens change, so will their expectations.
Automation yielding dividends, officials say
Lia Russell, FCW
To support growing demand for automation technologies, ACT-IAC released an AI playbook for government agencies.

Open Innovation
White House Budget Office Wants to Know How You Would Make Contracting More Efficient
Courtney Buble, Government Executive
The federal government is looking to reduce cost and time of procurements, like the private sector.

Evidence and Evaluation
One Year In, the Evidence Act is Producing Results
Jed Herrmann, Robert Shea and Andrew Feldman, Nextgov
Most agencies have identified evaluation officers and chief data officers and have started developing learning agendas that identify priority areas.
Legislative mandates provide direction on data
Lia Russell, Federal Computer Week
VA, HHS offer a look at how data management mandates from recent legislation are helping agencies.
Predicting a ‘Kilo of Impact’
Meeghan N. Zahorsky, Stanford Social Innovation Review
Instead of relying on measurement to prove the value of a past investment, determining the value of an intervention before it has even started allows funders to factor in social impact.

Management
Performance is the key to employee engagement
Mike Anderson, Federal News Network
The preferred approach is to make performance management the centerpiece of the employee engagement strategy.
2020 is the year for scaling up Trump administration workforce pilots
Nicole Ogrysko, Federal News Network
For the administration and its efforts to better position the federal workforce for the 21st century, many of its priorities will look familiar.
Trump Administration to Expand Hiring Pilot Programs in 2020
Erich Wagner, Government Executive
Pilot program with simpler resumes and more input from subject matter experts in assessing candidates will reach at least five additional agencies this year.

Reorganization
Pending study to examine OPM-GSA merger
Lia Russell, Federal Computer Week
There’s still no information yet on how the congressionally mandated study will be conducted.

Evidence and Evaluation
Agencies Will Start 2020 With 20 Data Actions to Complete by Year’s End
Aaron Boyd, Nextgov
The administration released the Federal Data Strategy Action Plan for the next year, adding four more action items from the draft released in summer.
FDA’s Data Strategy Modernization Starts With Public Outreach
Aaron Boyd, Nextgov
FDA is overhauling the way it thinks about data and wants to start with feedback from employees and outside experts.
Data Standards for Grants Management Are Now the Law
Jeff Myers, Rujuta Waknis and Jason McGill, Nextgov
Standards will connect currently siloed reporting of incompatible grant data into compatible, open and transparent data that can be understood based on consistently defined data elements.
Federal agencies strive for OPEN Government Data Act compliance – and a Modern Data Experience can deliver
Nick Psaki, Federal News Network
The federal government is making strides with the OPEN Government Data Act, which demonstrates the critical role data plays in future innovation.
2019 in review: A chief data officer in every agency
Tajha Chappellet-Lanier, FedScoop
The signing of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act sent agencies running to find a CDO.

Collaboration
Government information sharing efforts remain a mixed bag
Derek B. Johnson, Federal Computer Week
The rollout of a new tool in 2017 has improved cybersecurity information sharing across the federal government, but other once promising programs are withering on the vine.

Innovation
The New Practice of Public Problem Solving
Tara McGuinness & Anne-Marie Slaughter, Stanford Social Innovation Review
A new class of innovators is advancing the public good by figuring out what people actually need and then testing, improving, and scaling solutions that may already be out there. Here are the four elements of their method.

Management
Federal Agencies Need a New Management Model
Howard Risher, Government Executive
Practices are out of sync with those proven to support successful, high performance work environments.
Navy Launches a New Civilian Human Capital Strategy for First Time in a Decade
Courtney Buble, Government Executive
The goal is to improve hiring, retention and employees’ experiences at work.

Evidence and Evaluation
Data Evangelists Spread the Word on Boosting Government Performance
John Kamensky, Government Executive
A recent gathering of state and local officials had the feel of an old time revival.
Keys to success for a chief data officer: Automation ‘with a purpose’ and willing workforce
Jory Heckman, Federal News Network
The departments of Transportation and Energy have turned to machine learning tools to get a better handle of their data, but officials say those tools will only get them so far.
HUD, USDA throwing a little spaghetti against the wall to see what big data projects stick
Jason Miller, Federal News Network
HUD and USDA are turning to pilots to use data in new ways and gain support throughout the agency.

Management
Feds maintain ‘resilient’ engagement despite the shutdown
Jessie Bur, Federal Times
The federal workforce’s engagement in their jobs dipped only slightly in 2019, despite a record-breaking government shutdown to start out the year, but some agency subcomponents fared worse than others.

Innovation
How open innovation can transform the government technology playing field
Dan Chenok, Federal Computer Week
New entrants bring new applications that add significant value to government data.
Energy wants to open its innovation hub to the public
Dave Nyczepir, FedScoop
Energy hopes to open its Innovation Community Center to external partners in 2020.
Army Applications Laboratory: How problems get solved
Lauren Williams, Federal Computer Week
How the Army connects with nontraditional problem solvers to close capability gaps and drive modernization.
How You Can Get Better at Picking Creative Ideas
Dylan Walsh, Government Executive
A new paper investigates a relatively understudied part of the creative process: the very early stage, when we first generate rough ideas.