Collins Center Offers On-line Performance Management CourseThe Collins Center is pleased to announce our first professional development course for managers in the public and non-profit sectors. A six-module online course in performance management will be offered for the first time in March 2010.
Performance Management in Government and Non-Profits will provide public sector and non-profit managers the tools necessary to help their organizations realize the value of setting goals, measuring performance and using the resulting data as a management tool to improve outcomes. Using the latest in online technology, this course will be offered in a manner that presents material in an intuitive way. It is a very user-friendly presentation for those new to online education.
In the current environment of heightened accountability, government organizations and non-profits are increasingly adopting management approaches focused on using goals and performance indicators to increase effectiveness and communicate accomplishments. Municipal, state, and federal government employees, as well as non-profit managers interested in better understanding this approach to management and in building related skills, will benefit from this course. The knowledge and tools gained from this course will be extremely valuable in helping to set an organization on a path of management for results.
This introductory course in performance management was designed specifically for public sector managers and non-profit officials at all levels of experience. The course was adapted from a McCormack Graduate School of Policy Studies course taught by former Collins Center Director Shelley Metzenbaum, PhD., who assumed the position of Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget for performance and personnel management in the Obama Administration last fall. Knowing what and how to measure will help raise your organization to a higher level of achievement.
· For those managers just starting out or changing career fields, this course will familiarize them with performance management techniques, give them the ability to use goals and indicators, and give you a set of in-demand skills to help build their careers.
· For those who have been in management for a while, this course will add a solid understanding of how to use goals and performance indicators to their toolkits and begin to play a leadership or partnering role in building such systems within their organizations.
· For senior managers, this course will help identify whether and how they might want to introduce or improve the use of goals and measures within their organizations and teach them how to avoid some of the pitfalls.
This course is the first in the Center's program of professional development courses to benefit the public and non-profit sectors. The Collins Center plans to offer additional courses, certificate programs, and internships to enhance the educational opportunities for those interested in public service. For more information about Performance Management in Government and Non-Profits, or to suggest courses for development, contact Sandy Blanchette, Education Program Developer at the Collins Center (
sandy.blanchette@umb.edu) or 617-287-5534).
The Collins Center will again exhibit its programs and projects at the Massachusetts Municipal Association Annual Meeting and Trade Show, to be held January 22-23, 2010 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston. The theme of this year's annual meeting is "Local Leaders: Acting Today, Building Tomorrow, Creating a Stronger Future", goals the Center is committed to helping Massachusetts cities and towns reach. The trade show will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Friday the 22nd, and from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday the 23rd. 
