Late last year, the White House and a number of former Obama administration officials began rolling out an apparently coordinated campaign to promote an “outcomes mindset” for government and the social sector. Unfortunately, while this agenda includes many positive recommendations, its central message is worrisome.
The outcomes-focused paradigm proposes leveraging data and new technology to achieve “21st-century solutions” to the nation’s most pressing social needs. But in reality, outcomes-based policies and funding have been around for decades, and their history is far from universally positive.
Continue reading SIRC’s article at the Stanford Social Innovation Review.