Dustin Brown Deputy Assistant Director for Management, OMB Asian Regional Seminar, Malaysia

1. Building a High Performance Government: The Obama Administration’s Performance Management Approach Dustin Brown Deputy Assistant Director for Management, OMB Asian Regional Seminar, Malaysia March 1, 2011

2. Where are we Headed? Government That Works. “We shouldn’t just give our people a government that’s more affordable. We should given them a government that’s more competent and more efficient. We can’t win the future with a government of the past.” President Barack Obama State of the Union Address, January 25, 2011 “The test of a performance management system is whether it's actually used…. Federal managers and employees at all levels must use performance goals and measures to set priorities, monitor progress, and diagnose problems.” Chief Performance Officer Jeff Zients October 29, 2009

3. Lessons Learned from Past Efforts • +__ • Stable performance planning and reporting framework • Performance focus • --__ • Lack of leadership involvement • No focus on prioritization or management • Focus on creating plans/reports 38% 56% • __--__ • Not used by managers • Not used by Congress to allocate funds • Reinforced stovepipes • +__ • Program focused • Challenging questions on program effectiveness/mgmt 40% 64% 38% 56% Past government-wide efforts helped set goals and report results, but fell short of establishing lasting, effective management practices and became compliance activities with little senior or program engagement Government Performance and Results Act (1993 - present) Program Assessment Rating Tool (2003 - 2008)

4. PART Not Used by Congress for Funding Decisions Congress’ funding allocation Administration’s proposal 1,015 programs $3,508M in 2009 193 programs $1,126M 297 programs $635M 26 programs $18M 326 programs $1,603M 173 programs $125M

5. Where are we Coming From? Lack of Performance Focus. 38% 56% 40% 64% A Gap Exists Between Private and Public Sector Performance Management Practices

6. Public Views on Importance of Results Focus * • Current views on government performance is strongly related to their confidence in the government's ability to solve problems, but 66% have little or no confidence (a record low). • By 62% to 36%, people said their priority is making government more efficient and more effective, not reducing its size • 44% of Americans rate government’s ability to meet its goals as not so good or poor, but 61% say satisfied with own personal interactions with Federal programs. • When asked to rank the priorities for improving government, the top two are making the government more accountable for how it spends its money (45%) and reducing wasteful spending (38%), and making programs more effective at solving problems (29%). • Having agencies set clear goals that are measured by real-world results (68%) was top-ranked specific proposal, followed by improving the budget process. *Center for American Progress/Hart Survey from July 2010

7. Transition to Obama Administration • Opportunity to adopt latest practices from State, local, international examples into government-wide efforts • But, need to tailor performance improvement framework to characteristics of U.S. Federal government • Need to move beyond government-wide performance improvement efforts that led to compliance instead of establishing useful, lasting management practices

8. Past Legislation created a foundation But ….. the true test of a management system is Is it used?

9. How Will We Get There? Performance Management Strategies that Make Government Work Better • Use performance information to lead, learn, and improve outcomes • Communicate progress through data-driven reviews • Strengthen problem-solving networks

10. Use Performance Information to Lead, Learn, and Improve Outcomes Senior agency leaders typically focus on communications, budget, legislation —not results To achieve the Administration’s goals, we need to focus leaders on driving focus on results through to completion

11. Agency High Priority Performance Goal Approach

12. Example Agency Priority Goals • Reduce the homeless veteran population from 110,000 to 59,000 by June 2012 by providing permanent housing • Double renewable energy generating capacity to 60 gigawatts • By 2011, HHS will increase Children’s Health Insurance Program enrollment by 516,000 children or 7 percent above the 2008 baseline • By the end of 2011, reduce the number of households with children who experience very low food security by 100,000. • By 2011, USDA will reduce the number of Salmonella illnesses by 50,000 and reduce illness costs by about $900 million • Assist 3.1 million homeowners who are at risk of losing their homes due to foreclosure • Achieve significant reduction in violent criminal offenses of at least five percent within 24 months on targeted tribal reservations

13. Overview of High Priority Performance Goal Process Engage Agency Heads Identify Goal Leaders Action Plans Data-Driven Performance Reviews Public Updates on Site Quarterly Updates Agency Reviews OMB Reviews based on: Quarterly Data, OMB surveys, Goal Leader surveys on likelihood of success Progress on Priority Goals reported on web site Quarterly Targets Quarterly Milestones Identify problems Strategy Measures Milestones Contributing Programs Management Review Processes Senior Goal Leader Goal Lieutenant 3-8 set by agency heads Ambitious, Meaningful Measurable Within Current Budget/Legislation

14. USAPerformance.gov Taxonomy New Goal-Focused Performance Taxonomy Agency Theme Legend Submitted by agencies – Phase I Agency-DefinedGroupings Budget Functions Planned for Phase II Priority Goal Sub-Goal (tag-only) Other Information Performance Data Action Plan Contributing Programs Measures Milestones Other Agency Measures Other Agency Programs Explanatory Narratives Explanatory Narratives Indicators Financial Resources Explanatory Narratives USASpending Data.gov or agency site Budgetary Resources Granular Data MAX

15. 2. Communicate progress through data-driven reviews • Data-driven discussion on progress with quarterly survey of Goal Leaders and OMB on: • Likelihood of goal achievement? • Confidence in that assessment? • Which actions would most improve performance? • Promising practices identified? • Were targets/milestones for this quarter met? • Inform decisions across the broader system • All levels of organization • Provide data back to delivery partners with value add on what does and does not work • Invite ideas and stimulate innovation • Motivates employees through visible goals • Known goals encourages collaboration and innovation without fear of not meeting ambitious goals Apply “Bill Bratton accountability principle” across the Federal government: “No one got in trouble if the crime rate went up. They got in trouble if they did not know why it had gone up and did not have a plan to address it.”

16. Senior-Led Performance Management Reviews

17. Strengthen Problem-Solving Networks • Performance Improvement Council fosters cross-agency problem solving to drive performance and results • High Priority Goals can be an area of focus for multiple agencies: housing for veterans, support for military families, etc. • Establish peer review networks to help improve quality and effectiveness of agency performance reviews • Testing ExpertNet platform to engage outside experts in problem solving

18. Government Performance Modernization Act (2010) Signed into law by President Obama January 4, 2011 Priority Setting and Cross-Agency Coordination • Requires President to set Federal Government Priority Crosscutting Outcome and Management Goals one year after taking office • Requires Agency Heads to Set 2-year Priority Goals • Requires identification of low-priority program activities Management Reviews • At Least Quarterly Review of Federal and Agency Goals Elevates Roles • Establishes Chief Operating Officers and Performance Improvement Officers in each agency • Establishes inter-agency Performance Improvement Council Transparency/Accountability • Requires all performance information on central website with quarterly updates on Priority Goals • Annual reports to Congress on unmet goals

19. Thank You Questions? Contact Information Dustin S. Brown Deputy Assistant Director for Management Executive Office of the President Office of Management and Budget dbrown@omb.eop.gov