Products

Based on our extensive knowledge of state and local government, and nonprofit organizations, we offer a series of specialized data tools.  These data maps help decision-makers at all levels find, mine and use data to assess and improve the performance of their entities, be they state agencies, cities, counties, school districts, special districts or nonprofits. 

Our lead product is Compass, a performance dashboard template that provides any executive, board or legislative body a simple, consistent and reliable chart of an entity’s past fiscal and operational performance, and future targets.  We can tailor the dashboard to any form of government, including states, counties, cities and school districts, and most types of nonprofit organizations.  We also offer community foundations and other civic leadership networks custom community indicator dashboards for tracking and assessing the vitality, competitiveness or sustainability of their communities.

In addition, we design, develop and implement data navigation tools for our clients, and train them on using the tools.  For example, we help our clients develop data visualization tables for organizing and displaying performance data, identifying significant data patterns and resolving multi-dimensional analytical queries.  These tables enable our clients to automatically aggregate and sort complicated operational and fiscal data about their organizations and programs.  They automatically create cross-tabulations, highlight noteworthy patterns and graphically display the results in visually-compelling tables.  And they give our clients the interactive ability to drag and modify data displays, a powerful tool for seeing operations in new and illuminating ways.

We provide an integrated toolkit of products and services for civic-minded candidates for executive offices (e.g., governors, county executives and mayors in strong mayor form cities), as well as legislative candidates.  For every client, we furnish an easy-to-use set of tools, including those in the table below.

Summary of Governance Transition Toolkit

Transition Planning Services

Transition Systems & Tools

Furnish strong management advisory team Provide structured transition assistance Conduct baseline analysis (e.g., interviews, budget review & performance trend analysis) Develop innovative management plan Prepare action plan for tracking results Develop critical decision calendar Organize cabinet & personnel selection process Scan & propose best management practices  Coordinate agency transition committees

Strategic blueprint for first term Automated decision calendar system Legislative agenda & priorities (model bills) Biennial budget proposal (with metrics) Long-term fiscal recovery plan Agency performance priorities & metrics Personnel selection process (by position) Cabinet agenda (operating blueprint) Public communications website/apps Messaging portal & research

During the pre-election and post-election executive planning and transition processes, our management advisory service outlines entity-wide issues and strategies, encompassing planning, budgeting, contracting, technology, personnel and communications.  As a result, before taking office, new officials will have a baseline for tracking progress, an action plan for restoring fiscal health and an agenda for making services more cost-effective.

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We offer our clients a cost-effective, scalable and sustainable outsourcing system.  This includes a full range of high-quality products, including an outsourcing decision template to help our clients determine whether it makes sense to outsource a particular program, function or service.  For clients who have made a preliminary decision to consider outsourcing, we provide a market scan that helps our clients determine whether the market offers sufficient competition to make the outsourcing cost-effective over the long term.  We also offer our clients sample Requests for Information (RFIs), Requests for Proposals (RFPs), vendor evaluation score sheets and contracts that can be easily tailored to any outsourcing effort.

We design and build messaging systems to help advocacy groups garner support for their respective endeavors. For selected clients, we will develop a unifying platform for weaving together values, messages and recommended policy actions.  Each messaging portal will furnish compelling stories for framing the client’s values and messages, and emotionally reinforcing the need for its agenda. It also will entail an efficient infrastructure for distributing messages, including an automated system for linking and updating framework content. 

Ultimately, the proposed system will furnish the intellectual nexus for each client’s brand, values, messages and actions.  It will provide a collaborative, structured and disciplined process for mobilizing client volunteers and partners.  It will equip the client’s messengers with the information they need to engage potential supporters, and broaden public support for the client’s agenda.  And, it will galvanize efforts to build donor networks, raise funds and recruit new leaders and advocates.

We offer a platform for planning and managing civic initiatives.  Many corporate or community foundations are seeking well-conceived, well-organized and structured systems for planning, launching and sustaining successful civic improvement initiatives.  By linking our civic engagement engine to a specific issue, and offering a range of supportive campaign management services, we help civic leadership groups mount successful change initiatives in their respective communities or focus areas (e.g., tax reform at the state level or a more specific project at the local level).  We also can provide a crowd-funding platform for existing associations, advocacy groups and civic leadership groups, as well as emerging groups trying to raise funds for good works.