Performance Management Best Practices for the Public Sector
How can your organization know where it is going if it does not understand where it has been?
Performance measurement allows organizations to track and improve resource allocation, risk management, organizational design, and accountability. By setting goals, measuring progress, and taking corrective action, an organization can truly determine if it is achieving its desired results.
In the public sector, performance management can be used to publicize strategy, manage transformation, and improve accountability. Over the past three decades, BRONNER has advised on best practices for performance management strategies across hundreds of state and local government clients. These include:
Focus on outcomes, not outputs. Outputs are the things that an organization produces, such as the number of cases processed, or the number of students enrolled. Outcomes are the results that an organization achieves, such as the reduction in crime or the improvement in student achievement. It is important to focus on outcomes because they are the ultimate measure of an organization's success. BRONNER guides clients to develop measurable outputs.
Use data visualization to communicate performance. Data visualization is the use of charts, graphs, and other visuals to communicate data. This can be a powerful way to communicate performance information to stakeholders. Data visualization can help to make performance information more accessible and understandable, and it can also help to highlight trends and patterns. BRONNER uses tools like Tableau to visualize performance.
Use metrics with a time series. Metrics are the specific measures that are used to track performance. It is important to set time-based metrics that compare period of performance so that progress can be tracked over time. Examples include a percent reduction in streetlight outages or in the cost to trim a tree compared year over year. This will help to ensure that the organization is on track to achieve its goals. Timely metrics can be relevant to both internal operations and public engagement, in BRONNER’s experience.
Communicate performance internally and externally. Performance information should be communicated to both internal and external stakeholders. This will help to ensure that everyone is aware of the organization's progress and that there is a shared understanding of the goals. BRONNER is an advocate for government transparency, and performance dashboards are a great way to achieve that goal.
In addition to these best practices, there are several other factors that can contribute to successful performance management in state and local government. These include:
Leadership commitment. Performance management will not be successful without the commitment of leadership. Leaders must be willing to invest in performance management and to create a culture of accountability.
Staff buy-in. Staff must be willing to participate in performance management. This means that they must understand the benefits of performance management and they must be willing to collect data and track progress.
Flexibility. Performance management is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Each organization must tailor its performance management system to its own unique needs.
Performance management can be a valuable tool for state and local government. By following these best practices, organizations can improve their efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability.
In addition to the above, here are additional tips for performance management in the public sector:
Use a variety of data sources to collect performance information. By capturing data from a variety of sources, measured can be informed by what is considered effective from multiple perspectives. This will help to ensure that the information is accurate and complete.
Use data analysis to identify trends and patterns. Longitudinal analysis of the data will help to identify areas where the organization is performing well and areas where there is room for improvement.
Use performance information to make decisions. The constraints on government budgets combined with the need for fiscal prudence requires organizations to allocate resources to the most effective programs and continually improve overall performance.
Communicate performance information in a clear and concise way. Public sector entities are accountable to their residents and constituents. Transparent and accessible measurement of program performance help stakeholders to understand the organization's progress and to allows the organization to address concerns about the allocation of resources based on effectiveness measures.
Performance management is an ongoing process. Even the most well-designed performance metrics must be periodically reviewed and updated regularly to ensure that they meet the organization's needs. By following these best practices, state and local government can improve their performance management systems and achieve their desired results.
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