2019 Intentions
Here are some high-level thoughts for now.
Evaluation Can Shape System and Service Design
People may shape their behavior (and policy implementation) based on how they think performance will be evaluated.
“The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor.” ~Donald T. Campbell, Social Scientist
We can all suffer from this teaching to the test syndrome. We can also use it to our advantage. We plan to be more intentional about tying the performance management framework we use, Results-Based Accountability Framework, with our scrum practices. This means being more intentional and consistent in answering the question 1) How is anyone better off (outcomes-oriented)? 2) How well did we do (process-oriented)? 3) How many/much did we do (output-oriented)? with our individual projects. The hypothesis is if we are more aware of how we’re evaluating our own work then we will be more effective in determining and achieving measurable outcomes.
Depth > Breadth
Our Office started off very scrappy in 2014 as a one person operation working on many different projects. As a four-person team today, we have evolved to focus on discrete parts of larger-scale projects. Continuing to tightly scope our work so that we can help transform highly prioritized / strategic areas will be an important aim for us this year. One area is enabling more people to access and keep a greater number of services. Part of this effort includes building out sfhsa.org, aligning service delivery on the website with non-digital experiences, and helping to relaunch our intranet.
Growth
It’s important everyone on the team is feeling like they are working towards their own personal development. We started setting up periodic check-ins to reflect more on what we would like to accomplish, how to do so, and see if we’re heading in that direction. Many people struggle to have reflection built into our work life and these moments allow for that to occur. We also plan to revive a learning club where we are all engaged with something (book, podcast, etc.) similarly expand our thinking together.
So, what are your plans for 2019?
