LG INNOVATOR INSIGHTS
You are what you measure: outputs vs outcomes
Metrics and determining success indicators to measure performance is crucial in enabling Council's to quantify progress, connect activities with objectives, monitor advancement and give insight into opportunities for improvement. However, what you measure can come at a cost, and becomes the steering wheel that navigates organisational behaviours and community outcomes.
As performance and visualisation of data becomes an increasing 'hot topic' for our sector, it is important to not lose sight of the 'why' and purpose of the data we are collecting and the story it is (or isn't) telling us. We are immersed in a sea of data, and the availability of this data is unprecedented in human history. While data can provide us with so much insight, it can either help or hinder us in driving our desired performance. It comes down to understanding that what we measure matters.
KPI's have been around and have dabbled in and out of local government for some time now, never really finding a forever home in our sector. KPI's typically measure outputs, which are generally revision mirror metrics, such as number of food inspections undertaken, customer wait times or number of expiations issued. They paint an image of past performance (lagging indicators) and don’t always align with the outcomes we are trying to achieve.
While we know that having quantifiable measures are important to being able to measure progress and performance, the opportunity to measure desired outcomes rather than traditional outputs has increasingly become the focus to help us improve our local communities.
So, what's the difference?
Outputs are the tangible or direct results of a process, task or activity. Outputs can be directly measured and often include deliverables such as products or services which can be measured in terms of quality and quantity.
Outcomes measure the results of a process, task or activity and may not be directly observable or easy to measure. Outcomes can take a long time to manifest and may be difficult to measure.
To measure outcomes, it is necessary to understand and link measures to our key objectives. The questions we need to ask before we set our indicators are:
What are we trying to achieve? What does success look like? How can we better predict future conditions? What behaviour are our indicators driving?
Understanding the difference between the two different measures can have an enormous impact on the type of culture, behaviour and standards being set and followed. For example, below are some typical measures which can be applied in local government. What is measured and understanding the key objectives and results really shifts the focus and provide greater clarity on the organisation's goals.
