Measuring Performance in Public and Nonprofit Organizations or The Columbia History of American Television

Measuring Performance in Public and Nonprofit Organizations

Author: Theodore H Poister

In recent years, a commitment to increased accountability and improved performance has become essential in both governmental agencies and nonprofit organizations. To help managers and executives in their ongoing quest for greater accountability and improved performance Theodore H. Poister, offers a comprehensive resource for designing and implementing effective performance measurement systems at the agency level. The ideas, tools, and processes in this vital resource will help organizations develop measurement systems to support such results-oriented management approaches as strategic management, results-based budgeting, performance management, process improvement, performance contracting, and employee incentive systems. Using this book as a guide, public and nonprofit organizations can accurately measure outputs, efficiency, productivity, effectiveness, service quality, and customer satisfaction, and use the resulting data to strengthen decision-making and improve agency and program performance. 

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Table of Contents:

	Tables, Figures, and Exhibits
	Preface
	The Author
Pt. 1	The Management Framework for Performance Measurement	1
1	Introduction to Performance Measurement	3
2	Developing Effective Performance Measurement Systems	22
Pt. 2	Methodological Elements of Performance Measurement	33
3	Identifying Real Outcomes and Other Performance Measures	35
4	Clarifying Program Goals and Objectives	58
5	Defining Performance Indicators	76
6	Analyzing Performance Data	108
7	Reporting Performance Data	124
8	Processing Performance Data	141
Pt. 3	Strategic Applications of Performance Measurement	157
9	Using Performance Measures to Support Strategic Planning and Management	159
10	Incorporating Performance Measures into the Budgeting Process	186
11	Supporting Performance Management Systems	204
12	Improving Quality, Productivity, and Customer Service	219
13	Using Comparative Measures to Benchmark Performance	236
Pt. 4	The Process Side of Performance Measurement	253
14	Implementing Effective Measurement Systems	255
	References	275
	Index	283

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The Columbia History of American Television

Author: Gary R Edgerton

Television is a form of media without equal. It has revolutionized the way we learn about and communicate with the world and has reinvented the way we experience ourselves and others. More than just cheap entertainment, TV is an undeniable component of our culture and contains many clues to who we are, what we value, and where we might be headed in the future.

Media historian Gary R. Edgerton follows the technological developments and increasing cultural relevance of TV from its prehistory (before 1947) to the Network Era (1948-1975) and the Cable Era (1976-1994). He begins with the laying of the first telegraph line in 1844, which gave rise to the idea that images and sounds could be transmitted over long distances. He then considers the remodeling of television's look and purpose during World War II; the gender, racial, and ethnic components of its early broadcasts and audiences; its transformation of postwar America; and its function in the political life of the country. He talks of the birth of prime time and cable, the influence of innovators like Sylvester "Pat" Weaver, Roone Arledge, and Ted Turner, as well as television's entrance into the international market, describing the ascent of such programs as Dallas and The Cosby Show, and the impact these exports have had on transmitting American culture abroad.

Edgerton concludes with a discerning look at our current Digital Era (1995-present) and the new forms of instantaneous communication that continue to change America's social, political, and economic landscape. Richly researched and engaging, Edgerton's history tracks television's growth into a convergent technology, a global industry, a socialcatalyst, a viable art form, and a complex and dynamic reflection of the American mind and character. It took only ten years for television to penetrate thirty-five million households, and by 1983, the average home kept their set on for more than seven hours a day. The Columbia History of American Television illuminates our complex relationship with this singular medium and provides historical and critical knowledge for understanding TV as a technology, an industry, an art form, and an institutional force.