ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Performance Management
Are the Performance Pieces Finally Falling Into Place?
John Kamensky, Business of Government
It’s taken over 20 years, but the pieces seem to be finally falling into place for the use of performance information to inform decision making.
Twelve “better practices” that can help public leaders tackle key organizational challenges and boost results: An interview with Bob Behn, Professor, Harvard Kennedy School
Andy Feldman, GovInnovator Podcast
Bob Behn recommends twelve practices or leadership skills that can help organizations strengthen their performance.
Infusing Government with a Data-Driven Culture
Stephen Goldsmith, Governing
Philadelphia’s former mayor explains the steps his city took to make effective use of data and bring it to bear on performance.

Analytics/Evaluation
Warner ‘cautiously optimistic’ on DATA Act rollout
Meredith Somers, Federal News Radio
Sen. Mark Warner said he wants to see agency updates and a plan to ensure the law’s rollout isn’t lost amid the election season.
Getting “Moneyball” Right in the Social Sector
Srik Gopal and Lisbeth B. Schorr, Stanford Social Innovation Review
The rigorous use of data to guide social funding decisions is essential, but to do it well, we need to broaden the evidence base, focus on principles of practice, and embrace adaptive integration over fidelity.
What can the government do about big data fairness?
Bianca Spinosa, Federal Computer Week
Big data analytics are used in making determinations for credit, employment, and even criminal sentencing. Should the government make sure they are used fairly?

Open Government
CitizenScience.gov: Not your grandfather’s GSA
Steve Kelman, Federal Computer Week
Steve Kelman checks in on the bootstrap effort to better crowdsource government research.
Hackathon, policy moves designed to apply tech to foster care programs
Aisha Chowdry, Federal Computer Week
The White House launched a two-day hackathon to develop better data tools for foster care providers and social workers and announced a host of policy initiatives to back up the effort.

Performance Management
OMB Gets High Marks for Pursuing Cross Agency Priority Goals
Charles Clark, Government Executive
GAO suggests a bit more transparency would help interagency cooperation.
The Path to Better Performance Reporting
Shelley Metzenbaum, Route Fifty
What are the lessons learned and what are we still learning about performance and evidence-based management in government?
More Executives Aren’t Going to Solve Government’s Performance Problem
Howard Risher, Government Executive
A proposed law aims to bolster program management but agencies already have the necessary tools—they just need the commitment.

Efficiency/Reorganization
Want a $10,000 Bonus? Start Looking for Ways to Cut Waste in Your Department
Kellie Lunney, Government Executive
Bipartisan bill that would reward feds who save the government money advances in the Senate.

Presidential Transition
White House Transition Survivors Regret Neglecting Congress
Charles Clark, Government Executive
The candidates’ teams must begin now to prepare for the next crisis.

Analytics and Evaluation
What went wrong with DATA Act pilot?
Carten Cordell, Federal Times
Four senators want to know why OMB is behind on a pilot program meant to increase transparency and cost savings.
Using Data for Action and for Impact
Jim Fruchterman, Stanford Social Innovation Review
There is a growing urgency in the social sector to make better use of data to inform decision-making and evaluate performance, but many organizations struggle to do this. This article provides a framework to help organizations do better.
Social Media’s Place in Data-Smart Governance
Stephen Goldsmith, Governing
Cities are learning to mine this trove of information to predict the impact of future events and significantly improve operations.

Open Government
How HHS is spurring data innovation both inside and outside the agency
Greg Otto, FedScoop
The director of the HHS Health Data Initiative says the administration’s Open Data initiatives have been a catalyst — but more needs to be done.
House Republicans want to change the way agencies make rules
David Thornton, Federal News Radio
H.R. 5226 would require an agency to publish online every public communication it makes regarding a proposed rule, along with the date, method and intended audience of the communication.

Risk Management
The Secrets to Getting Off the GAO High Risk List
John Kamensky, Business of Government
Over one-third of agency programs on GAO’s high-risk list have gotten off. What’s the secret?

Performance Management
Management 101: It really does work
Steve Kelman, Federal Computer Week
New research that shows several “best practices” do indeed measurable improve organizational performance.

Analytics/Evaluation
OMB releases DATA Act reminder as 1-year countdown starts
Meredith Somers, Federal News Radio
One year after OMB laid out guidance on DATA Act compliance, it is reminding agencies what is expected of them as the countdown begins for the law’s complete rollout.
White House recognizing risks of big data
Jason Miller, Federal News Radio
A new report by the federal chief technology officer highlights the power of big data while also emphasizing the need to consider its ethical implications.

Innovation
GSA, Commerce partner on new innovation lab
Billy Mitchell, FedScoop
A new innovation lab in San Francisco will bring together tech teams from academia, private industry and agencies from federal, state and local governments to solve problems facing urban communities.

Presidential Transition
New Approach to Presidential Transition Officially Under Way
Charles Clark, Government Executive
Just ahead of the deadline six months before Election Day, President Obama on Friday signed an executive order establishing the framework for the coming presidential transition.
A quick start for the next administration
Alan Howze, Business of Government
Every President wants to get off to a fast start – but success is challenging —akin to launching a start-up business while simultaneously conducting the largest corporate takeover in the world.
Plan an effective transition for an effective administration
Alan Howze, Business of Government
There is one action that can have more impact than any other –early and effective transition planning.

Analytics/Evaluation
Hundreds of comments shape final Data Act schema
Zach Noble, Federal Computer Week
Treasury has released its finalized playbook, the Data Act Information Model Schema (DAIMS).
4 Reasons Data Analytics Often Fail
Tod Newcombe, Governing
But despite all the successful implementations of analytics, many such projects actually fail.
Determining if your program is having a positive impact (i.e., impact evaluation 101)
Andy Feldman, Gov Innovator Podcast
How can you determine the impact of your program? And which strategies may sound useful but are unlikely to produce accurate answers?

Collaboration
Want to Be A White House Leadership Development Fellow?
Kellie Lunney, Government Executive
The program gives emerging agency leaders an opportunity to spend a year working on cross-agency management priorities and goals identified by the administration.

Customer Service
Delivering citizen services with one weird trick
Zach Noble, Federal Computer Week
Federal website designers might be surprised by what users want once they use analytics to actually measure users’ desires.

Efficiency/Reorganization
How Government Leaders Have Handled Downsizing and Other Big Changes
Charles Clark, Government Executive
Engaging the workforce in every step of the transformation process is critical, says one agency head.

Innovation
GSA wants to create a permanent home for innovation with new third service
Jason Miller, Federal News Radio
GSA Administrator announced the creation of the Technology Transformation Service, which brings together 18F, the Presidential Innovation Fellows program and the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies.
GSA unifies tech groups into single service
Adam Mazmanian, Federal Computer Week
The Technology Transformation Service will entrench 18F, which was created in March 2014, as a permanent fixture of the federal bureaucracy.

Presidential Transition
OMB to Agencies: Craft Transition Materials, Not New Budget
Eric Katz, Government Executive
Federal agencies’ budget planners will spend their last months under President Obama preparing for their transition to the next administration rather than crafting funding requests.
5 Things the Next President Must Do Now to Avoid Being a Failed One-Termer
Don Kettl, Government Executive
Government is failing to adapt to the challenges it’s facing.