Sustainability and Scaling Formats

As you think about sustainability and scaling, it’s essential to think about embedding evaluation processes into the day-to-day functioning of your organization. Previous entries have talked about these issues; the next several entries will provide you with various formats to utilize. The question is: when the grant monies end, how will you determine what’s working; how will you collect and analyze data: how will you use the data to make decisions on sustainability and scaling of effective services, activities and resources; how will you “market” your results to the financial authorities at your college? Results-Based Accountability is one approach.

Trying Hard Is Not Good Enough by Mark Friedman

 What is Results-Based Accountability™?

Results-Based Accountability™ (RBA), also known as Outcomes-Based Accountability™ (OBA), is a disciplined way of thinking and taking action that communities and educational systems can use to improve the lives of children, youth, families, adults and students. RBA is also used by organizations to improve the performance of their programs or services. Developed by Mark Friedman and described in his book Trying Hard is Not Good Enough, (www.resultsaccountability.com). RBA is being used throughout the United States, and in countries around the world, to produce measurable change in people’s lives.

What’s different about RBA?

RBA uses a data-driven, decision-making process to help schools and organizations get beyond talking about problems to taking action to solve problems. It is a simple, common sense framework that everyone can understand. RBA starts with ends and works backward, towards means. The “end” or difference you are trying to make looks slightly different if you are working on a broad community level or are focusing on your specific program or organization.

Creating Organizational Impact with RBA

Organizational impact focuses on conditions of well-being for children, young adults and the organization as a whole that a group of leaders is working collectively to improve. For example: “Young adults ready for the workforce,” or “A safe and productive manufacturing site”. In RBA, these conditions of well-being are referred to as results or outcomes.

It is critical to identify powerful measures to determine the progress a community college is making towards achieving its outcomes. For organizations, the measurements are known as indicators and are usually collected by governmental agencies. A community wanting to have residents with good jobs may look at “turning the curve” on the unemployment rate.

Performance Accountability

Organizations and programs can only be held accountable for the customers they serve.  RBA helps organizations identify the role they play in community-wide impact by identifying specific customers who benefit from the services the organization provides.
For programs and organizations, the performance measures focus on whether customers are better off as a result of your services.  These performance measures also look at the quality and efficiency of these services.  RBA asks three simple questions to get at the most important performance measures:

• How much did we do?
• How well did we do it?
• Is anyone better off?

In answering these questions, a job training program might measure:

• The number of trainees in its program
• The ability of its trainers to explain concepts
• The percentage of its trainees who obtain and keep a job.

Turn the Curve Thinking

Once you identify the most powerful measure(s) to improve, RBA provides a step-by-step process to get from ends to means. This process is called “Turn the Curve” thinking.

Why use RBA?

RBA improves the lives of students, employers and communities and the performance of programs because RBA:

• Gets from talk to action quickly;
• Is a simple, common sense process that everyone can understand;
• Helps groups to surface and challenge assumptions that can be barriers to innovation;
• Builds collaboration and consensus;
• Uses data and transparency to ensure accountability for both the well-being of people and the performance of programs.