Comparative Performance Measurement

Performance measurement has exploded at all levels of the public and nonprofit sectors. As agencies collect data, they -- and the citizens they serve -- have begun asking how their agency is doing compared to other similar agencies. This book is a step-by step guide to using comparative performance measurement (CPM) to improve the management and operations of a particular agency or function, to improve policy and resource allocation decisions, and to communicate to the public what is being accomplished and what community needs should be addressed. Managers will learn how to determine the scope of a CPM effort; how to select data that are measurable, meaningful, and comparable; and how to develop data instruments and procedures to maximize the useful data collected. They will understand the options for analyzing performance data and answering the two questions effective managers need to answer: How well is the agency doing, and why did the agency perform that way? Finally, managers will learn to report results effectively, and how to translate CPM information in

Elaine Morley is a senior research associate in the Public Management Program of the Urban Institute's Metropolitan Housing and Communities Center. Scott Bryant is principal of Scott P. Bryant and Associates, which provides consulting services in strategic planning, organizational improvement, quality management, and performance measurement to local governments. Harry Hatry is a principal research associate at the Urban Institute, where he is the director of the Institute's Public Management Program.