Abstract

Data quality is seen as a major obstacle to purposeful performance information use by public managers. However, there is a discrepancy between how much managers affirm they care about quality and how much it actually affects their use of performance information. Using interviews of 44 managers in two large public service organizations, we analyze how different facets of data quality really influence managers’ ability and willingness to use performance data. We find that, at first, managers focus on issues of credibility, while issues of usability become more important as performance information use proliferate. Managers who engage with data despite its flaws play an important role in owning and fixing data problems, while also creating and leading networks of performance information use. Thus, more often than not, the burden of improving data quality falls on managers rather than being the responsibility of the organization. In short, it is not data quality that encourages data use, but rather managers being willing and able to use performance data that leads to both subjective and objective improvements in data quality.

摘要

数据质量被视为公共管理人员有目的地使用绩效信息的主要障碍。但是，在多少经理确认他们关心质量与实际影响质量对绩效信息的使用之间存在差异。通过对两个大型公共服务组织中44位经理的访谈，我们分析了数据质量的不同方面如何真正影响经理使用绩效数据的能力和意愿。我们发现，起初，管理人员将重点放在信誉问题上，而随着绩效信息的使用激增，可用性问题变得越来越重要。尽管存在数据缺陷，但仍可以使用数据的管理人员在拥有和修复数据问题方面起着重要作用，同时还创建和领导绩效信息使用网络。因此，通常，改善数据质量的重担落在管理人员身上，而不是组织的责任。简而言之，不是数据质量鼓励数据使用，而是管理人员愿意并能够使用绩效数据，从而导致数据质量的主观和客观改善。