The FGFOA Free Internet Based Webinar Series presents

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The FGFOA Free Internet Based Webinar Series
presents Strategic Planning, Performance
Measures, and Benchmarks Thursday,
August 18th, 200 p.m. 340 p.m. EDT CPE 2
Hours TB
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I skate to where the puck is going to be, not
where it has been.
Wayne Gretzky
A strategic plan is forward-looking

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Strategic Planning
Recommendation. The Government Finance Officers
Association (GFOA) recommends that all
governmental entities use some form of strategic
planning to provide a long-term perspective for
service delivery and budgeting, thus establishing
logical links between authorized spending and
broad organizational goals.
Best Practice Recommended Budget Practice on the
Establishment of Strategic Plans, Government
Finance Officers Association, 2005.
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Typical Components of a Strategic Plan
What is it?

1. Vision for the communitys future.
2. Mission statement for the government
   a statement of purpose.
3. Environmental scan.
4. Listing of community strengths, weaknesses,
   opportunities and threats SWOT analysis.
5. Goals for the selected timeframe.
6. Measureable objectives for each goal.

Gerald L. Gordon. Strategic Planning for Local
Government, Second Edition, International
City/County Management Association (ICMA),
Washington, D.C., 2005.
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• Strategies to address each objective.
• Implementation plan - timelines and assignments.
• Relationship to budget and personnel resources.
• Contingency plan for the unexpected.
• Scheduled performance assessments, periodic
  reviews, and updates.

Gerald L. Gordon. Strategic Planning for Local
Government, Second Edition, International
City/County Management Association (ICMA),
Washington, D.C., 2005.
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Purpose/Linkages
In July 2010, the King County Council adopted
the King County Strategic Plan, 20102014. How
will the plan be used? This Plan is intended to
speak to and include something for a variety of
audiences. For the public, this plan is meant
to Communicate the countys vision and show
our intended direction and emphasis over the
next five years. Reflect your ideas and
suggestions for services that are important or
need improvement. Signify our commitment to
customer satisfaction. Serve as a baseline to
show progress and allow you to hold us
accountable for our actions and principles over
time. For cities, businesses, and community
organizations, this plan is additionally meant
to Reflect our commitment to working with you
as partners in helping to achieve community
goals.
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For King County officials, managers, and
employees, the plan is additionally meant to
Align county employees, services and programs
with high-level Goals. Inform policy,
operational, and budget decisions. Provide a
structure to ensure oversight and management of
county programs and services. Create a
countywide planning framework to guide subsequent
plans. Updating the Plan During late 2013
through 2014, the office of Performance,
Strategy, and Budget conducted community and
employee engagement and collaborated with council
and the countys separately elected officials to
develop an update for the Strategic Plan. In ,
2015, the Council updated and revised the
Countys Vision, Mission, Guiding Principles, and
Goals. County staff continues to work to develop
more specific objectives and a measurement system
that will show how well the County is achieving
each of its goals.
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Does it cover everything your entity does? or
just priorities (the icing on the cake)?
If everything, then youll need to set priorities
to use it in making budget decisions.
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• Whose input does it reflect? Stakeholders.
• The Community business and the public at large
• Elected officials
• Management
• Other public entities (cities, county, school
  district, special districts, colleges)
• Collective bargaining units
• Suppliers
• Who else? (We targeted site selection firms who
  work with companies considering relocating to our
  community.)
• Who owns it? (see above list)
• As importantly, who really embraces it
• and will keep it current and relevant?

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What is unique to your community and
organization?
An Environmental Scan is the identification and
monitoring of factors from both inside and
outside the organization that may impact the
long-term viability of the organization. During
this step you are essentially attempting to
develop the big picture.
A SWOT analysis examines an organizations
processes by reviewing its (internal) strengths
and weaknesses and matching these to its
(external) opportunities and threats. Compiling
this information enables you to identify all
major factors affecting your organizations
operations, and act as a decision-making aid to
formulate an effective response strategy.
http//www.doh.wa.gov/portals/1/documents/mtgs/201
1/20110214-pr-pmc-mod-02-14-11swot08.pd
Source
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http//doa.alaska.gov/dop/fileadmin/statewideplann
ing/pdf/workforceplanningenvironmentalscanandswota
nalysis.pdf
Source
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Local governments typically adopt several
community goals. Each goal is quantified by one
or more objectives. These reflect what we want to
accomplish, and by when.
Each objective is addressed through one or more
strategies intended to meet specific,
quantifiable outcomes/results. Strategies may
involve more than a single department. Success
of strategies is evaluated through the use of
performance measures. If a strategy is not found
to be effective, another may be adopted to
achieve the objective.
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Vision Statement King County a diverse and
dynamic community with a healthy economy and
environment where all people and businesses have
the opportunity to thrive. Mission
Statement King County government provides
fiscally responsible, quality-driven local and
regional services for healthy, safe, and vibrant
communities.
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Guiding Principles Collaborative We work
together effectively within the organization and
in collaboration with other governments, private
entities and community partners.
Service-oriented We listen and respond to our
customers in a culturally responsive way and
prioritize their satisfaction as we do our work.
Results-focused We establish community driven
goals, measure our performance, and report to the
public on our success in meeting those goals.
Accountable We are responsive and transparent
to the public in our roles, functions and actions
as individuals and as a government. Innovative
We are creative, learn from experience and
results, and seek out new and efficient ways to
solve problems and serve the public.
Professional We uphold the high standards,
skills, competence, and integrity of our
professions in doing the work of King County
government. Fair and Just We serve all
residents of King County by promoting fairness
and opportunity and eliminating inequities.
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The strategic plan includes two types of goals
1. What goals that articulate what King
County intends to accomplish or services it
intends to provide, and 2. How goals that
articulate how King County intends to conduct
its work. In general, what goals relate to
the services provided to the public (such as bus
service), and the how goals speak to the
internal aspects of services (such as
cost-efficiency).
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• The what we deliver goals are
• Justice and Safety. Support safe communities and
  accessible justice systems for all.
• Health and Human Potential. Provide equitable
  opportunities for all individuals to realize
  their full potential.
• Economic Growth and Built Environment. Encourage
  vibrant, economically thriving and sustainable
  communities.
• Environmental Sustainability. Safeguard and
  enhance King Countys natural resources and
  environment.
• The how we deliver goals are
• Service Excellence. Establish a culture of
  customer service and deliver services that are
  responsive to community needs.
• Financial Stewardship. Exercise sound financial
  management and build King Countys long-term
  fiscal strength.
• Public Engagement. Promote robust public
  engagement that informs, involves, and empowers
  people and communities.
• Quality Workforce. Develop and empower King
  Countys governments most valuable asset, our
  employees.

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Performance measures are tied to each objective.
Note that the objectives were not quantified in
this Plan.
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http//www.kingcounty.gov//media/depts/executive/
performance-strategy-budget/documents/pdf/2015-201
6/StrategicPlanningGuide020416.ashx?laen
In the update of the Strategic Plan, focus is
given to this approach to quantifying objectives.
The source above provides helpful reference
materials.
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(No Transcript)
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Illustration of a Strategic Plan
Structure Miami-Dade County, Florida
Note the timeframe and performance objectives.
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Illustration of a Strategic Plan Structure City
of Wellington, Florida
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Illustration of a Strategic Plan Structure City
of Wellington, Florida
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Illustration of a Strategic Plan Structure City
of Wellington, Florida
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Sustainability/durability vs. Keeping
Current How long the Plan lasts depends on who
embraces it ensuring that actions and
activities are regularly tested against the
vision, values and goals reflected in the plan
and whether they remain in place for example, a
Mayor or a City Manager. At the same time,
strategies to achieve objectives may fail and
need to be replaced, objectives may change as
priorities become redefined, and performance
measures may be refined.
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Performance Measures
Performance measures, including efficiency and
effectiveness measures, should be presented in
basic budget materials, including the operating
budget document, and should be available to
stakeholders. Performance measures should be
reported using actual data, where possible. At
least some of these measures should document
progress toward achievement of previously
developed goals and objectives. More formal
reviews and documentation of those reviews should
be carried out as part of the overall planning,
decision-making, and budget process.
National Advisory Council on State and Local
Budgeting (1998), Recommended Budget Practices A
Framework for Improved State and Local Budgeting
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Performance Measures

• Types of performance measures
• Inputs (what we budget)
• Outputs produced
• Efficiency unit cost or timeframe
• Effectiveness a measure of quality
• Outcomes/results
• Outcomes are the most meaningful to our clients
• (but outputs are frequently mistaken as
  outcomes).
• We can be both inefficient and ineffective, but
  as we improve in both areas, we reach a point
  where we can improve one at the expense of the
  other.
• Disclosure People disagree on terminology.

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Benchmarking Opportunities

• Florida Benchmarking Consortium
• International City/County Management
• Association (ICMA)
• Professional associations
• Industry leader the best in a functional area
• Comparable community
• A challenge with any approach is normalizing data
  i.e., agreeing on what and how to measure so
  that your data is comparable to others data.
  Participants in formal benchmarking groups spend
  extensive time on this as each new measure is
  adopted.
• Retaining the momentum collecting the data,
  retaining documentation, and reporting requires
  dedication.

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Benchmarking When available, benchmarks can be
powerful reference points. Comparisons can be
made with a group of peers or with a single
selected benchmarking partner. The same
partner(s) may not be available for all services
or the best choice. Data integrity is critical.
Florida Benchmarking Consortium Annual Services
Report
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Can we compare against others? The case for
common definitions.

• Benchmarking against other jurisdictions
• provides context. In the case of library
• services, the Public Libraries Survey is a
  voluntary survey conducted annually in accordance
  with the Museum and Library Services Act of 2003,
  and the U.S. Census Bureau is the data collection
  agent.
• Comparisons such as this one cannot be made
  unless either common definitions are used or data
  can be converted to a comparable form.
• 9,091 libraries were surveyed in 2013,
• as published in this 2016 report.

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Usability of Performance Measures
Frequency/timeliness, understandability,
measurement

• Is the data worth the effort/cost to collect it?
• Is it electronically or manually collected?
• How is documentation retained?
• Is it available daily, weekly, monthly, annually?
  With how much of a lag?
• How will it be used budget process, budget
  document, employee evaluations, reallocation of
  resources, web site?
• Who will understand what it reflects?
• Audit and verification of measures?
• How easy can the data and methodology be
  verified? Is it even collected or simply
  estimated?
• Is there a formal audit process in place?

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•  
• Report Number 14-032
• The Department of Aging and Disability Services
  (Department) reported reliable results
• for two of the four key performance measures
  tested for fiscal year 2013. A performance
  measure result is considered reliable if it is
  certified or certified with qualification.
• Two key performance measures tested for fiscal
  year 2013 were certified with qualification.
• The reported results for one key performance
  measure were inaccurate for fiscal year 2013
  because the local authorities with which the
  Department contracted did not retain the required
  identification of preference forms for 4 (6.67
  percent) of 60 items tested.
• Factors prevented certification of a key
  performance measure for fiscal year 2013 because
  the Department
• - Did not retain required supporting
  documentation.
• - Deviated from the performance measure
  definition.
• For all four performance measures tested, the
  Department did not have complete policies and
  procedures for calculating and reporting the
  performance measures. In addition, while the
  Department maintained evidence of performing a
  documented review of performance measure data,
  the Department did not have policies and
  procedures requiring that review.
• In addition, for two performance measures tested,
  the performance measure definitions contain
  outdated and incorrect data sources and
  calculation methodologies that are not consistent
  with how the Department actually calculates the
  reported results.

Illustration of Auditing Performance
Measures Texas State Auditor
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Communicating data to elected officials and the
public Is the focus on presentation or content?
Illustration of Presentation of Performance
Data Montgomery County, Maryland
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Illustration of Presentation of Performance
Data Montgomery County, Maryland
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Do we share only the good news? No.
How much credibility do we lose when we only
report data that makes us look good? We should
recognize that some data can be influenced, but
not controlled. Other factors may more than
offset our efforts. Alternately, we may have
committed insufficient resources dollars and/or
people or used strategies that werent
successful. To be effective, we need data to
inform future decisions and to document why they
are being made.
Note the crash rate has increased.
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Illustration of Presentation of Performance
Data Montgomery County, Maryland
Note the data is a year old.
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Do we share only the good news? Sometimes we
cant control what happens.
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The need for multiple measures
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The need for multiple measures
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A Strategic Plan must integrate with other
processes. We facilitate funding decisions
through the identification of priorities and the
development of strategies and operational plans.
We determine success of strategies and
operational plans through the evaluation of
performance -- and use that data to fine tune the
Strategic Plan.
The Final Test
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Strategic Planning
Performance Measurement
National Advisory Council on State and Local
Budgeting (1998), Recommended Budget Practices A
Framework for Improved State and Local Budgeting.