Dr Anne Marie McGauran and Dr Jeanne Moore NESF Policy Analysts

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Dr Anne Marie McGauran and Dr Jeanne MooreNESF
Policy Analysts

• Measuring Implementation of Irish Policies

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Structure of Presentation

• Aim of Presentation
• About the NESF
• Focus on Policy Implementation
• Current Projects
• Home Care Packages
• Child Literacy

Launch of Mental Health and Social Inclusion
Report November 2007
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Aim of Presentation

• This seminar will outline the NESFs new work
  focus on implementation of Irish public policy.
• We hope to discuss methodologies and issues which
  will be important to consider in the NESF work as
  it develops.
• This is in the context of the NESFs new work
  mandate to focus on policy implementation, to
  gain better information on the factors which lead
  to successful delivery of policies, so that
  quality outcomes can be gained from them.

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Role of the NESF
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Membership
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The NESDO Family
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Policy Implementation

• Why the interest in Irish policy implementation?
• Many strategies and policies have been introduced
  in Ireland in recent decades, but implementation
  can be piecemeal and incremental.

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Lots of strategy, not so much implementation...
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History

• 1970s discovery of the black box i.e. what
  is happening in the black box between policy
  design and policy delivery? (Quinn Patton, 1978)
• It is crucial to delve into this black box, to
  find out why policy implementation is not
  achieving the results hoped for or if it is,
  then how.
• Studies have led to various theories on what
  issues affect policy implementation.

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Top Down and Bottom Up

• Top-down theories highlight factors which could
  lead to successful implementation such as
• clear objectives,
• clear lines of authority,
• good communication between various groups, and
• sufficient resources.
• But... there is also negotiation between those
  directing policy and those implementing it. This
  led to the development of several bottom-up
  theories. These focus on
• organisational conflict, and
• Bargaining.

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Hybrid

• Hybrid theories
• combine elements of both the top-down and
  bottom-up theories
• stress that implementation is constrained by the
  world outside policy making as well as
• the institutional context in which implementers
  act (so organisational culture and practices very
  important).
• This leads to an evolution of policy during the
  implementation phase.

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Current work in Ireland

• Dept of Taoiseach has commissioned a range of
  studies looking at implementation
• OECD review of the Irish Public Service,
• ORP (Organisational Review Process),
• NESF work.

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OECD review - key issues for implementation

• Management
• project management,
• co-ordination and networking,
• leadership.
• Accountability
• accountability systems, incentives, sanctions,
• performance measures.
• Resources
• budgeting (allocation prioritisation),
• staffing (including management, capacity and
  training).
• Engagement
• engagement of different groups in delivery,
• Communication.
• Innovation and best practice
• Politics and politicians

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Organisational Review Process

• Looking at the capacity of three government
  departments to deliver their goals. Considering
  issues such as strategy management.
• Due to publish the reviews this Autumn.
• Both this and the OECD review could be considered
  more top-down in approach.
• Now, before moving onto the NESF work...

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How would you measureimplementation?

• We need you!
• Take 5 minutes to
• tell us what you think

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NESF Projects on implementation

• Two new NESF projects on implementation
• Home Care Support Scheme (also known as Home Care
  Packages),
• Child Literacy and Social Inclusion.
• We aim to consider both top-down and
  bottom-up issues, using work by Dr Maureen
  Gaffney on organisational culture.

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Home Care Packages

• This project examines the Home Care Support
  Scheme as a case-study of policy implementation,
  from the perspective of an outcomes (or
  performance) oriented approach to policy
  formulation and delivery.
• It will
• Identify the characteristics of an ideal
  outcomes/performance oriented approach
• Compare the development and formulation of the
  Home Care Support Scheme to this ideal and
• Examine on-the-ground delivery of the Scheme to
  see the degree of policy implementation that
  occurred, regional and local variations in this,
  and factors that might explain this.
• This focus on performance could be considered a
  top-down approach to implementation.

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A performance approach?
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Performance/outcomes approach to implementation

• Performance management is a management cycle
  under which programme performance objectives and
  targets are determined, managers have flexibility
  to achieve them, actual performance is measured
  and reported, and this information feeds into
  decisions about programme funding, design,
  operations and rewards or penalties (Curristine,
  2005131). Involving
• Good strategy planning
• Linking performance to budgets
• Measuring and evaluating performance
• Good accountability and incentive systems
• Co-ordination with existing policies practices
• Taking this ideal template of performance
  management, we will compare it to how the home
  care package scheme has been planned, budgeted
  for, measured, held to account and co-ordinated

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Why Child Literacy and Social Inclusion?

• A goal of the review of the National Poverty
  Strategy in 2001 was to halve the proportion of
  pupils presenting with serious reading
  difficulties in schools designated as
  disadvantaged by 2006 (Kennedy, 2007 202).
• This target has not been met but has been is set
  out again in the National Action Plan for Social
  Inclusion 2007-2016 to reduce the proportion of
  pupils with serious literacy difficulties in
  primary schools serving disadvantaged communities
  from the current 27-30 to less than 15 by
  2016.
• Twenty years of literacy policies and initiatives
  and there is little improvement.
• So it is not for the want of policy
  initiatives....

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Child Literacy and Social Inclusion

• The overall objective of the project is to
  examine- both from the bottom up and the top
  down- the process of implementation of policies
  that seek to address child literacy and social
  inclusion.
• The aim is to identify best practice in the
  implementation of child literacy and social
  inclusion policies, as outlined in Delivering
  Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) and
  elsewhere as well as identify challenges to
  effective implementation in and outside of
  schools, particularly in the home and the local
  community.

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Child Literacy and Social Inclusion

• To examine policy design, implementation and the
  context and process of delivery. Focusing, in
  part, on the softer aspects of implementation,
  the non-rational aspects, to do with
  organisational culture (Gaffneys paper).
• Frames of organisational culture
• Observable artefacts espoused valued and shared
  tacit assumptions.
• Coping with Change
• Creating the motivation to change
• Learning new concepts and new meanings for old
  concepts
• Internalising new concepts and meanings.
• How? Five case studies of schools and community
  projects.

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Delivery, Context and Process of Implementation

• How is the policy being translated as it works
  its way down to the ground? Is it being
  implemented in the same way across schools?
• How is the policy perceived by stakeholders? Is
  there agreement as to the problem? Is there even
  agreement as to what the problem is?
• How is implementation success and failure
  rewarded and sanctioned?
• What is the organisational culture in schools and
  how does it shape policy delivery?
• What are the shared tacit assumptions - about
  people and their motivations, about the
  management process, about the school, the
  Department, about how the work gets done, about
  how success is achieved, about the culture
  itself?

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Just beginning...

• We do not have all the answers!
• We hope we are
• Throwing a spotlight on the process and context
  of implementation
• Building methodological skills and knowledge
• Identifying the factors that contribute to more
  effective policy delivery with quality outcomes

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Benefits and Drawbacks

• From what you have heard, what do you think of
  our approach? What are the benefits and
  drawbacks?
• What other methods and approaches should we
  consider?

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Contact Details

• Thank you for your attention!
• For further information, please contact
• Dr Jeanne Moore, Dr Anne-Marie McGauran
• NESF Secretariat
• www.nesf.ie
• info_at_nesf.ie
• 01 814 6361