Performance measurement is a valuable tool for government. And, for that matter, businesses and communities too. It is a tool that not only measures results, but can also be used to improve them.

In government, we use it as a yardstick to measure our progress and to see how close we are to achieving the goals we set out in the Government Business Plan. It helps us track trends and plan for the future.

Alberta was the first provincial government in the country to adopt publicly reported results based performance measurement and our leadership has encouraged others to follow, using our system as a model to develop their own.

Click here for a list of links to other performance measurement sites.

While performance measurement is a very complex science, it is based on a few simple principles:

1. Measure the right stuff.

If you want to know how wealthy Albertans are, you could look at their gross earnings. However, this does not reflect how much money they take home. To measure how wealthy Albertans really are, it's best to measure what percentage of their income stays in their pocket.

2. Find the most accurate measures and use them consistently.

It’s important to maintain consistency in what and how you measure. This is what gives us the ability to track trends and see the results of programs and services that are operated over the long-term.

We haven’t yet figured out all the best ways to measure our performance, but we’re working on it. The quality of the information in Measuring Up has improved steadily.


3. Report the results.

Good information is of no value if no one knows about it. Albertans are encouraged to examine the results for themselves in our Measuring Up report and in our ministry annual reports.