What can it do for you?
Transform Your Government - When you change the budget
debate from cutting or adding to discussing outcomes, you
change the entire focus of government. As a result, governments
that utilize BFO transform the very nature of their work.
They embrace continuous improvement because managers are accountable
for results and programs must deliver the results citizens
want most from their tax dollars.
“By and large, most people distrust the traditional
budget process, so people distrust the final product. BFO
moves us from arguing about the validity of the budget to
talking about priorities…The nature of our budget debate changed
to outcomes.”
- Roger Neumaier, Snohomish County, Washington
Engage Your Citizens - Governments that align their
budgets directly with citizen priorities experience a renaissance
in their relationship with the public. Because the budget
process is transparent and more understandable, citizens can
be engaged as partners. Here’s what local governments report:
“As an elected official, I have something to talk
about to the public: results which reinforces trust in government.”
- Serena Cruz Walsh, Commissioner, Multnomah County,
Oregon
Engage Your Employees - Governments that utilize BFO
report a “major cultural shift” that develops leaders, improves
communication, cultivates new talent, and unifies the entire
organization around focused goals. BFO is an inclusive endeavor
that leverages ideas from a much broader pool of individuals.
“BFO opens up the organization and opens up lines
of communication. It’s an opportunity to educate everyone
from line staff personnel to the CEO…It also forces difficult
conversations that incremental budgeting doesn’t.”
- Stefani Conley, Mesa County, Colorado
Bring Common Sense to Your Budget - While the BFO
process isn’t traditional, the focus on purchasing results
citizens value -- instead of just adding or cutting last year’s
budget -- is surprisingly intuitive.
“It required us to stop doing things the old way. The old way had a lot of pitfalls and was a stale model that wasn’t working.”
- Dave Cook, City of Dallas, Texas
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