The Planning Process Using Results-Based Accountability™

What is Results-Based Accountability?™

RBA is a disciplined way of thinking and taking action that can be used to improve the quality of life in communities and the performance of programs, agencies and service systems.

Why use it?

• Moves groups from talk to action quickly
• Provides and promotes the use of a common language among stakeholders
• Addresses barriers to innovation • Builds collaboration and consensus
• Uses data to ensure accountability for populations and programs

How does it work?

RBA starts with the ends (results) and works backwards to the means to achieve the results

What do we mean by “result”?

The quality of life conditions of well-being that we want for the community as a whole.

Population Accountability and Performance Accountability

• Population accountability: The system or process for holding people in a geographic are responsible for the well-being of the total population or a defined subpopulation
• Performance accountability: The system or process for holding managers and workers responsible for the performance of their programs, agencies and service systems The strategies in this plan were developed at the population level and not at a program or agency level – meaning that this plan focuses on the improvement of oral health at the statewide and community level. As we move forward in the implementation of the plan, we will track the performance accountability of programs, agencies and the oral health service system to ensure they run efficiently and effectively.

Our Common Language

• Result: Conditions of well-being for an entire population
• Indicator: How we measure these conditions; the data that indicates achieving our result
• Baseline: What the measures show about where we’ve been and where we’re headed: 1) 5-year historical trend line and 2) forecast if we maintain current level of effort
• Story behind the baseline (or data): The positive and negative factors that contributed to the data
• Strategy: A coherent set of actions that has a reasoned chance of producing a desired effect
• Performance measure: Measure that tells us if our program, agency or service system is working by answering
  • 1) How much did we do
  • 2) How well did we do it
  • 3) Is anyone better off

Friedman, M. (2009). Trying Hard is Not Good Enough:. BookSurge Publishing

Creating the Strategic Plan: Our Results-Based Accountability™Process

Result: All people in Florida have optimal oral health and well-being
Focus area #1: Improved access to and utilization of quality oral health care
Focus area #2: Increased access to community water system fluoridation

Decision-making process:

• Chose and confirmed result
• Identified two areas of focus that will lead to the result
• Identified existing and missing data
• Created historic and forecasting baselines (data trend lines)
• Created data development agenda
• Chose headline indicators according to criteria
• Told the story behind the baseline (trend line data), including a root cause analysis
• Listed partners
• Identified what works to improve the indicator and achieve the result
• Formed strategies according to Results Based Accountability criteria