Organizational alignment with logic models: Marathon County, Wisconsin: using a carefully thought-out implementation schedule and focusing on change management and training, Marathon County changed the focus of managers and elected officials to outcomes rather than outputs.

• Author: Mucha, Michael J.
• Position: [PM.sup.2] Connections: PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT & MANAGEMENT

Marathon County, Wisconsin, continuously evaluates its programs and services in light of its goal: creating a learning organization that promotes improved quality of services as well as increased service delivery efficiency. The performance management system the county uses focuses on two major components, logic models and outcome measurement reports. In addition, the county has developed a mission, vision, and set of core values that all county activities must reflect, which helps it focus on desired outcomes.

ABOUT MARATHON COUNTY

Located in north central Wisconsin, Marathon County is geographically the largest county in Wisconsin, with a population of about 134,000. The county's economy, historically centered on its abundant timber resources, has gradually diversified, and now Marathon County is home to sizable manufacturing and agriculture industries as well. The county employs 776 full-time-equivalent employees in 23 departments, and it also encompasses discretely presented components units (DPCU) such as the airport and health-care center, which make up the overall financial structure of the county. The county's governing body, the Board of Supervisors, is made up of 38 members, each elected to a two-year term. However, each DPCU has its own board in addition to being under the control of the county's Board of Supervisors, and these boards must approve each DPCU's budget. The Board of Supervisors, along with a county administrator, oversees the county's $114 million budget. The county has a complicated management structure that includes an appointed county administrator who oversees some departments, department heads who are elected, department heads who are appointed by that department's board of directors, and one elected department head who is actually an employee of the state.

GETTING STARTED WITH OUTCOME MEASUREMENT

The county did not start focusing on outcomes, measurement, and improvement all at once. Rather, it developed its performance management system, called outcome measurement, over the past few years. The effort began in 2003, and through most of 2004, the county's outcome measurement team, along with all other county departments, received training on developing outcomes, identifying indicators, and using data measurement tools. In addition, county departments were introduced to the idea of logic models, a systematic and visual way of showing the relationship between inputs (resources), outputs (activities), and outcomes (results).

In 2006, the county began collecting data for many county programs and services, which it used to establish baselines. Beginning in 2007, these baselines were incorporated into the budget document and...