Results Based
Accountability™
A quick guide
April 2015
Results Based Accountability™ (RBA) is a simple, practical way for organisations to evaluate the
results of their programmes. The question, ‘How are our communities, whānau and clients better off
as a result of our work?’ is central to RBA.
RBA uses publicly available data and data generated by providers to track the results of a programme
as well as its contribution to the wellbeing of a community.
Background
Results Based Accountability™ was developed by Mark Friedman, author of Trying Hard Is Not
Good Enough.
RBA is used internationally and since its introduction by the Ministry of Social Development in
2006, New Zealand has become one of the world leaders in its application and implementation. RBA
is used widely across social service, health and disability, local government, community
development, environmental development, recreation and commercial sectors.
RBA changes the way government and NGOs in the social sector think, act and communicate. It is a
powerful tool that:
 encourages better performance
 increases effectiveness
 allows a provider to develop evidence to show value for money
 promotes collaboration between agencies and demonstrates the impact of working together.
Using RBA, providers and the Ministry of Health and will be able to track if the services provided to
service users are having the expected impact, and if not, what changes can be made to increase their
impact.
Key RBA concepts
Accountability
RBA uses two types of accountability.
Population accountability is about improving the quality of life for people in a specific
community or population, such as families with children under five years in Motueka. It recognises
that this population will be served by many different agencies and programmes.
Performance accountability is about how well a provider is delivering a service and whether the
provider is making a positive difference for the people who use their service.
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RBA identifies measures that can be used to assess each service that a provider delivers. RBA uses
three types of performance measures:
 How much did we do?
 How well did we do it?
 Is anyone better off?
In a health setting, these questions might measure:
 The number of individual plans (or care plans) completed within 3 months of entry to the
service.
 The percentage of staff assessed as meeting core competencies.
 The number and percentage of people accessing meaningful employment (including
voluntary employment), training or education.
Crucially, RBA links population and performance accountability. This makes it possible to
understand how each person or family who is helped by a programme contributes to improving the
wellbeing of a whole population.
Turning the curve
RBA trains users in a thinking process called ‘turning the curve’. The curve relates to a data trend,
which should be turned as the result of an intervention by a provider. For example, the curve relating
to rates of youth suicide should be turned downwards, while the curve relating to rates of child
immunisation should be turned upwards, as various providers make contributions to the issues.
Performance accountability
Turning the curve requires providers to collect and graph their performance measure data over time
so the provider and the Ministry can see if their activity is making a difference.
If a data curve is not turning in the right direction, RBA provides an opportunity to look at how to do
things differently via the stepwise process summarised below. The process should be used regularly
and inform a provider’s direction, planning and strategy.
1.
Graph the population or performance measure, including a history and a forecast of where
you think the measure will go if you don’t do anything differently.
2. Analyse the “story behind the data”. Consider the key causal factors or forces at work that
impact on the baseline data, as above.
3. Who are our partners? Identify existing and new partners who will play a role in helping you
turn the curve.
4. What works? Brainstorm ideas, approaches and activities that will help turn the curve, then
refine them. These should include low-cost and no-cost ideas.
5. What’s your action plan? Take the ideas generated in step 4 and make them into specific
strategies and actions. (Each action plan must identify the steps required to complete it, who
will be responsible for competing them and a timeline.)
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Benefits of RBA and streamlined contracts
RBA is able to show the contribution that both funders and providers make to the wellbeing of a
community. It facilitates collaboration – across agencies, with other NGOs and with service users.
Streamlined contracting offers standard terms and conditions for all social service contracts, a
standard approach to reporting and opportunities for agencies to align accreditation processes, such
as audit, monitoring and registration.
NGO providers moving to the streamlined contracting framework will be required to use RBA.
More information
Read more about Results Based Accountability and streamlined contracting on the Ministry of
Health website.
For any questions, please contact:
Adrienne Percy |streamline@moh.govt.nz
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