Signs of Performance Measurement Progress among Prominent City Governments

A review of budgets and other performance documents of cities at the forefront of performance measurement efforts finds evidence of advances in the reporting of measures of service quality, efficiency, and effectiveness. A cross-sectional review of performance marks further indicates that the caliber of service (i.e., the levels of service quality, efficiency, and effectiveness) required to be ranked as a performance leader for many municipal functions has improved over a two-decade period. However, a longitudinal review of a subset of individual cities provides only minimal support for the proposition that an advanced level of performance measurement acts as a catalyst for improved performance.