Making Outcomes Matter is a process of using incentives and disincentives to promote sustained activities that lead to change and improvement. This process integrates regular updates on project accomplishments and needed adjustments into assessments of progress, accountability, and co-learning. When groups engage in Making Outcomes Matter, they agree to (a) organize and review interim evidence of progress and impact (e.g., community and systems change; community-level indicators of health and development), and (b) assess findings with community and other collaborative partners to determine next steps for continuous improvement. Procedures to put this process into action can range from informal practices (e.g., marketing information and data to increase its use in decision making) to formal contingencies on behavior (e.g., grant installments based on achievement of a minimum number of programs or changes delivered each quarter).
The framework below illustrates five core phases (see A-E below) and twelve processes (see boxes) to advance community change and improvement. As illustrated, Making Outcomes Matter is a key process to help communities create and change conditions for behavior change and population-level improvements.
Core competencies related to this process include: (a) Developing strategic and action plans, (b) Developing a framework or model of change, (c) Evaluating the initiative, (d) Writing a grant application for funding, and (e) Sustaining the work or initiative.See the CTB Toolkits.
Work Group for Community Health and Development
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