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SUMMARY:Hitting the target but missing the point - Dr Philip Davies\, Oxfo
 rd Evidentia Limited
DTSTART:20101021T143500Z
DTEND:20101021T153000Z
UID:TALK25931@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:14709
DESCRIPTION:Performance Managed Government (PMG) has been a key feature of
  many\, if not most governments\, for the past two decades\, and is one wa
 y in which governments across the world have tried to be more evidence-bas
 ed. Central to PMG has been the use of national targets\, supposedly setti
 ng high national standards of performance and ensuring public accountabili
 ty. Although much maligned\, and now abandoned by the Coalition Government
  in the UK\, targets may have made a contribution to raising the performan
 ce and quality of some public services. One of the shortcomings of a targe
 t-based approach to public service performance is the appropriateness and 
 external validity of the targets set. Targets are often set that would be 
 hard to miss\, or that fail to provide the type or quality of service that
  the public wants. Hence\, the accusation that public services often hit t
 he target but miss the point.\n\nThis presentation will review the use of 
 targets as a means of evidence-based policy making\, and appraise whether 
 it is possible to have a system of performance-managed government that is 
 both internally and externally valid. It will also consider whether the ab
 andonment of national targets for public service delivery in the UK is pre
 mature.
LOCATION:Robinson College\, Grange Road\, Cambridge
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