In particular, as shown in figure 1, significantly more federal  managers today report having the types of performance measures called  for by GPRA and PART than they did 10 years ago. While in general there has been little change in federal managers’ reported  use of performance information governmentwide, agency level  comparisons between 2000 and 2007 reveal that some agencies have made  notable progress. Key Practices for Improving Government through the Use of Performance Information

As our survey results show, despite legislative and administration efforts  to focus federal management decisions on the achievement of results and  maximize the use of federal funds, changing the way federal managers  make decisions is not simply a matter of making program performance  information available. Based on our work on management reform efforts  as well as analysis of federal managers’ responses to our surveys over the  past 10 years, we have identified three key practices that can contribute to  greater attention to results when making management decisions. Regardless of the form of future initiatives, the next administration should  take steps to ensure that agencies emphasize these practices to make sure  that performance information is used in management decision making:  1.  demonstrate leadership commitment to results-oriented management;  2.  create a clear “line of sight” linking individual performance with  3.  build agency capacity to collect and use performance information. 3.). Additionally, we found a  significant relationship between federal managers reporting that managers  at their level are taking steps to ensure that performance information is  useful and appropriate and their reported use of performance information  in key management activities. Beyond this,  the next administration can better focus its efforts to improve  performance by (1) adopting a more strategic and crosscutting approach  to overseeing performance; (2) improving the relevance of performance  information to Congress; and (3) building agency confidence in  assessments for use in decision making. Improve the Relevance of Performance Information to Congress

In order for performance improvement initiatives to hold appeal beyond  the executive branch, and to be useful to the Congress for its decision  making, garnering congressional buy-in on what to measure and how to  present this information is critical. While the last decade has seen the  creation of an infrastructure for government performance improvement  efforts, and a more results-oriented culture in the federal government, we  still see more that can be done to make this transformation more  widespread among federal agencies. An  online e-supplement GAO-08-1036SP shows the questions asked on the  survey with the weighted percentage of managers responding to each item.
Why GAO Did This Study

Over the past 15 years, legislative and executive branch reform efforts have attempted to shift the focus of federal government management from a preoccupation with activities to the results or outcomes of those activities. Based on over a decade of work in this area, GAO has found a transformation in the capacity of the federal government to manage for results, including an infrastructure of outcome-oriented strategic plans, performance measures, and accountability reporting that provides a solid foundation for improving the performance of federal programs. However, agencies have made less progress in getting their managers' to use performance information in their decision making. GAO was asked to testify on the preliminary results of ongoing work looking at (1) trends in federal managers' use of performance information to manage, both governmentwide and at the agency level; (2) how agencies can encourage greater use of performance information to improve results; and (3) lessons learned from prior management reforms for the next administration. Our statement is based on prior GAO reports and surveys we conducted in 1997, 2000, 2003, and 2007. For the results of our 2007 survey, see e-supplement GAO-08-1036SP . GAO will be issuing a report at a later date that will explore the use of performance results in management decision making at selected agencies.

What GAO Found

According to GAO surveys, since 1997 significantly more federal managers report having performance measures for the programs they manage. However, despite having more performance measures available, federal managers' reported use of performance information in management decision making has not changed significantly. For the collection of performance information to be considered more than meaningless paperwork exercises, it must be useful to and used by federal decision makers at all levels--including Congress. To reach this state, GAO believes that the next administration should promote three key practices that we have identified in our work over the last 10 years: (1) demonstrate leadership commitment to results-oriented management; (2) develop a clear "line of sight" linking individual performance with organizational results; and (3) build agency capacity to collect and use performance information. In addition to encouraging agencies to employ these practices, the next administration should: (1) adopt a more strategic and crosscutting approach to overseeing governmentwide performance; (2) improve the relevance of performance information to Congress; and (3) build agency confidence in assessments for use in decision making.