ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Performance Management
Can Self-Managed Teams Work in Government?
John Kamensky, Business of Government
Federal leaders are in a quandary about how to improve employees’ engagement on the job.

Analytics/Evaluation
The value of Integrated Data Systems for states and localities: An interview with Dennis Culhane, Professor, University of Pennsylvania, and Co-Principal Investigator, Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy
Andy Feldman, GovInnovator Podcast
Programs and agencies in government often exist in silos, where the efforts of one aren’t necessarily connected with others and their data are not shared between them. That slows the process within government of learning what works, coordinating efforts, spurring social innovation, and continuous improvement.

Customer Service
6 steps to align agencies to citizen experience
Josh Plaskoff, Federal News Radio
Six steps to improving an agency’s customer experience.

Innovation
What is 18F?
Government Technology
Founded in March of 2014, 18F is a federal digital consultancy that helps other agencies buy, build and share modern software using agile development and human-centered design.

Open Government
Can Citizen Governance Save Our Republic?
James Toscano, Governing
Some governments are moving to give citizens more of a direct role in policymaking. It’s a promising experiment.

Presidential Transition
‘Superstar’ executives lend advice to career SES on upcoming transition
Nicole Ogrysko, Federal News Radio
The Senior Executives Association has a new guidebook for SES members.

Performance Management
New playbook trying to make performance metrics more than just a compliance exercise
Jason Miller, Federal News Radio
The Performance Improvement Council is trying to bring together tools and people to take better advantage of technology and data.

Analytics/Evaluation
Path to DATA Act rollout hits another roadblock
Meredith Somers, Federal News Radio
A four-month delay to deliver a process for tagging and transmitting federal spending information under the DATA Act might jeopardize the rule’s final rollout.

Collaboration
A new face of interagency collaboration
Steve Kelman, Federal Computer Week
The Urban Waters Federal Partnership’s entrepreneurial spirit and flair for true collaboration can be a model for other cross-agency efforts.

Customer Service
It’s Time to Cut the Long Lines for Government Services
Shelley Metzenbaum, Government Executive
Government can—and should—collect, organize, and share data about the timing and duration of government visits and other transactions in ways that are easily found, accessed, and understood.

Innovation
Beyond the Lab: Government Innovation in Unlikely Places
Darcie Piechowski, Business of Government
Innovation – and the creativity that goes along with it – can be applied to a myriad of organizational issues that may not garner the same attention.

Leadership
How Do You Do a Start-Up in the Government?
Dan Chenok, Government Executive
Leaders who have helped to stand up new agencies points to a number of lessons.
The Key to High Performance
Howard Risher, Government Executive
Research has confirmed that managers have more impact on an organization’s performance than any other factor.

Risk Management
Have Candid Conversations Before Bad Things Happen
John Kamensky, Government Executive
New guidance from the Office of Management and Budget offers a fresh approach to managing risk.
How TSA jump-started enterprise risk management
David Thornton, Federal News Radio
Two years before OMB released the updated A-123 to include Enterprise Risk Management guidance, the Transportation Security Administration was experimenting with implementing its own ERM system.
Managing Organizational Integrity Risks
Michael Keegan, Business of Government
A new report from the IBM Center aims to help federal managers meet the requirements of A-123 by providing them with a better understanding of organizational integrity risks (e.g., reputational risk) and offering approaches they can use to effectively manage those risks.
GSA releases playbook for enterprise risk management
Bianca Spinosa, Federal Computer Week
The CFO Council and the Performance Improvement Council have released guidance to help agencies meet new risk management requirements in OMB’s revised Circular A-123.

Analytics/Evaluation
How Utah became a leader in evidence-based policymaking
Andy Feldman, GovInnovator Podcast
State leaders in Utah have created a variety of centralized and agency-specific tools to incorporate evidence into policy and funding decisions.

Innovation
A Conversation With Mayors on Making Innovation Stick
Ed Skyler, Governing
Mayors from the City Accelerator’s first cohort reflect on the changes underway in their cities.

Leadership
A Key Efficiency Ingredient: Dissent
Stephen Goldsmith, Governing
Encouraging informed disagreement is the only way a public leader can learn whether an initiative might — or might not — succeed.

Open Government
White House pushes agency heads to expand open data
Chase Gunter, Federal Computer Week
The White House released new guidance instructing agencies to expand their data transparency activities and incorporate public feedback.

Risk Management
With A-123 update, OMB knits together risk management, internal controls
Jason Miller, Federal News Radio
A-123, now known as Management’s Responsibility for Enterprise Risk Management and Internal Controls, introduces a governmentwide risk management program, and it updates the internal controls program to better align with recent changes made by GAO.
White House to Agency Leaders: You Must Do More to Reduce Risk
Charles Clark, Government Executive
OMB released updated guidance requiring agencies to step up efforts to reduce risk across their operations.

Analytics/Evaluation
When Solid Data Isn’t Enough
John Kamensky, Government Executive
It takes more than accurate information to bridge the gap between evidence and policy.
Defining Evidence Down
Patrick Lester, Stanford Social Innovation Review
With evidence-based policy, we need to acknowledge that some evidence is more valid than others. Pretending all evidence is equal will only preserve the status quo.

Innovation
Bill would codify Presidential Innovation Fellows program
Sean Lyngaas, Federal Computer Week
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has introduced a bill to make the Presidential Innovation Fellows program permanent.

Leadership
Workforce management advice for the next administration
Chase Gunter, Federal Computer Week
The National Academy of Public Administration wants to see more workforce accountability and bottom-up feedback from the next administration.

Presidential Transition
Striving for Excellence in Federal Management
David Chu and G. Edward DeSeve, Government Executive
When an administration prioritizes good management, government is capable of great things.

Analytics/Evaluation
Transforming Federal grant programs into engines of evidence-based policy and innovation: An interview with Robert Gordon
Andy Feldman, GovInnovator
How can the Federal government encourage more evidence-based policy and innovation through the grant making process?
Tech in the service of performance measurement
Steve Kelman, Federal Computer Week
Kelman reports on innovations at DHS that could help analysts across government.

Innovation
Clinton tech agenda bakes in innovation teams
Adam Mazmanian, Federal Computer Week
Hillary Clinton’s newly released technology agenda calls for retaining the U.S. Digital Service and other innovation groups to improve government services.

Presidential Transition
Nominee for OMB Deputy Slot Promises Focus on the Presidential Transition
Charles Clark, Government Executive
If confirmed for the final six months of the Obama administration, deputy management director nominee Andrew Mayock would focus on ensuring a smooth presidential transition.

Risk Management
Can We Predict the Future More Accurately?
John Kamensky, Business of Government
Is there a science behind predicting uncertain events in the future, or is it intuitive?