Today’s Morning Buzz is brought to you by Anthony Santiago, Principal for Outside N Strategies. Anthony currently lives in Central New Jersey, but his heart is always with Newark. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn.
- What I’m reading: “Black Reconstruction in America,” by W.E.B Du Bois & David Levering Lewis
- What I’m watching: “Slow Horses”
- A hobby I enjoy: Hiking
- Who my pets are: Luna-Dog, Bella-Cat
By now, most municipal administrations have at least heard of CitiStat or some similarly structured approach to managing departments. There was a time where the Citistat model of layering metrics within department management was all the rage and cities were quick to add their own brand to it. Like Cap-Stat in our nation’s Capital in Washington DC, or ATL Stat in Atlanta. I myself helped launch Brick-CitiStat in Newark, NJ under the Booker administration many moons ago. But much time has passed since the early 2000s, yet CitiStat has not taken firm rooting in every city government. Why?
For the 2 or 3 of those readers out there unfamiliar with CitiStat, I should share a blurb on its origins. CitiStat was born in Baltimore, MD (circa 1999) and under the leadership of Mayor Martin O‘Malley, who transformed the police version of CompStat, into a tool that could be used by all city departments and major initiatives. For those looking for a deep dive and a valuable book on CitiStat, read “The PerformanceStat Potential” by Harvard Professor Robert Behn.
Using data to measure and manage government performance has evolved much over the years, with many commercial actors offering systems for municipalities to track citizen concerns and the time it takes for departments to respond. Some of those systems include dashboards that allow administrators to monitor progress in real time. One of my fondest memories in researching CitiStat in Baltimore (circa 2010) was how elegantly simple the program could be, while still being effective. Continuous improvement and regular updates on how departments are managing their workloads and if they are responding in a timely manner is a hallmark of any good performance management program. Regardless of the name (Office of Innovation, Performance Stat or Results Count) having a framework to manage departmental outcomes is important and should be incorporated into every city manager’s or strong mayor’s toolbox. In New Jersey the state Department of Community Affairs partnered with a local university and the mayor of Atlantic City, NJ, Mayor Marty Small, to introduce CitiStat to the area. What’s unique about Mayor Small’s CitiStat model is it includes both an internal series of Stat meetings with departments, along with monthly public meetings, allowing for the public to raise report and concern complaints directly to department leadership and creating another layer of accountability.
New municipal administrations rarely are eager to adopt programs or initiatives made famous by the prior administration. At best, a new administration might rebrand an effective program model, while continuing the progress. More state agencies should provide guidance and support in the form of technical assistance and other resources to municipalities, as in the case with NJ’s Department of Consumer Affairs and Atlantic City, to incorporate and sustain Stat programs. Doing so would allow municipalities to continue to add-on and improve their performance management programs year after year, without any misconceptions on the programs origin or the stigma of untested policy.
Talk to leaders in your state and see what they can do to support your municipality today in growing or beginning a performance management program in your community.