Making Government Work

Described by Peter Harkness, founder of Governing magazine, as "by far the most experienced journalists in the country covering public performance," Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene are senior advisors and columnists for Route Fifty, visiting fellows at the IBM Center for the Business of Government, special project consultants to the Volcker Alliance, senior advisors with the Government Finance Research Center at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and more. Greene is chair of the Center for Accountability and Performance at the American Society for Public Administration and they are both fellows in the National Academy of Public Administration. In the recent past, they have also worked as senior fellows with the Council of State Governments and senior fellows at the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania, and have served as long-time consultants to the Pew Charitable Trusts. Over more than twenty years, they were the management columnists for Governing magazine, and were senior fellows at the Governing Institute since its inception. The couple has worked for multiple other public sector organizations and have been researching and writing about performance management for nearly thirty years.

The Promises and Pitfalls of Performance-Informed Managementoffers many examples of performance management exemplars and miscues, and does so in a readable relatable style that will appeal primarily to practitioners. The book's coverage of the topic is wide-ranging, if occasionally thin in detail. This book could prove interesting for a classroom environment, as it is replete with points that could offer opportunities for discussion and debate.

• AcknowledgementsPrefaceAbout the Authors1. Overview2. ChallengesSustainabilityThe human elementDiffering perspectives3. BenefitsExhibit A: Montgomery CountyA catalogue of benefitsSan Jose, CaliforniaMinnesotaWisconsinIndianaDenver, ColoradoKing County, WashingtonCase Study – New Orleans: Shock Therapy4. History Progress at the state levelOur ringside viewFederal advancesBox: Building the federal performance infrastructureUps and downsAlternate approachesBox: Five major changes over the last thirty yearsCase study – Service Efforts and Accomplishments5. OutcomesKnowing the goalBox: The demise of Oregon BenchmarksStriving for efficiencySelecting top-level measuresCitizen surveysConnecting to national measuresCase study – Washington: Cross-agency collaboration6. Performance BudgetingPerformance budgeting legislationImpedimentsAttention to evidenceBudget executionThe environment mattersCase study – Austin: A budget with a visionCase study – Illinois: Unrealistic expectations7. PitfallsInsufficient resourcesLack of data expertiseWeak internal trainingCounterproductive incentivesSlow response Lack of sustainabilityThe practitioner-academic disconnectFear of adverse reactionToo much hypeFlaws with targetsA limited focusNeglect of intractable problemsLegislative indifferencePolitics trumps managementChecklist: Rx for Pitfalls8. Buy-InResistersAccountability vs. performance improvementAgency ownershipStat evolutionA collaborative approachCase study -- Colorado Q&A on achieving buy-in9. ValidationConsequences of bad dataBad data and drugsInconsistent comparisonsData fudging and outright cheatingVerificationA path forwardBox: The roots of inaccuracySloppy dataIneffective system controlsInconsistent information and changing definitionsPrivatization/contractor/third party issuesCase study – New York: Changing the definitions10. Data progressService deliveryOpen dataData sharingData governanceThe push for more helpful dataBox – Outdated technology Box: The path forwardCase study – Little Rock, Arkansas: Of data and human beings11. EvaluationEvaluation on the frontlinesShifting the paradigmBox: The evidence movementBox: A cost-benefit approachCase study -- Los Angeles: Solving a police recruiting puzzleResourcesGlossaryIndex