In light of the two conferences--Managing for Performance and the Mission-Driven Management Summit-- Ascendant held last week and the discussions around performance management in our education systems as well as the nonprofit and government sectors, I was surprised to read an article about new steps New York State is taking in today's Wall Street Journal, "State to Target Cheating by Teachers."

According to the article, "the day after state lawmakers approved a measure under which student scores on state tests will count for up to 40% of teachers' annual evaluations," they created "an investigative unit to combat cheating by aiding local districts and probing the most egregious cases."

Thank you to all the attendees of this year's Mission-Driven Management Summit! The event, held March 6-8th at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, brought together speakers and organizations from around the world to hear case studies and participate in interactive sessions designed to help make the connection between strategy and execution, as well as reach peak performance within an organization.

When we started Ascendant more than 4 years ago, we imagined "taking our talents" to the mission-driven sector. The concept was simple. We had been helping organizations execute their strategy for more than 10 years and they were creating great results...or returns for their shareholders. With Ascendant, we wanted to do the same with mission-driven organizations, or nonprofits. We just held our fourth Annual Summit, and it confirmed that we are doing the right thing.

As you know from our announcements, emails, and tweets, we are giving away a grant for a great mission-driven performance effort. Well, the applications came in, and we narrowed it down to the final 6. Below are the summaries of the finalist stories. All the applications were inspiring, so thank you everyone that applies. It gives us inspiration to continue to help mission-driven organizations.

Boston, MA – February 29, 2012 – Ascendant Strategy Management Group, Inc. announced today that it has obtained approval from the United States General Services Administration (GSA) under Schedule 70 Contract GS-35F-0610X to provide its software and consulting services to federal government, state and municipal governments. This contract is listed on both the GSA Library and the GSA Advantage!® procurement sites.

Recently, I watched an interview (conducted by Andy Feldman of Gov Innovator) of Bryna Sanger, the deputy provost at The New School in New York City. Throughout her career, Ms. Sanger has been researching, evaluating, and proposing best practices for performance measurement and management systems in cities around the country. Currently, she is conducting a study entitled, "Does Measuring Performance Lead to Managing for Performance," which takes a look at nearly 200 cities across the United States, and explores the link between performance measurement and performance management. The findings of her study are interesting and thought provoking, especially for those of us involved in performance management, and I wanted to take this opportunity to share an overview of them with you.

Let me quickly describe a dysfunctional organization. It is one whose leadership team meets on a regular basis. Maybe they meet weekly for 1 hour or monthly for 2-4 hours or even quarterly for 4-8 hours. They talk about all the things that are important to their organization. They discuss all of the challenges and successes. They fret over the complex and difficult issues, and then they break for the day and meet back again the next time. This might not seem all that unfamiliar to you.

Ascendant Strategy Management Group is pleased to announce its first annual Excellence in Mission-Driven Management Grant Competition. This competition will award a $2000 grant to the organization that best demonstrates how they utilized strategy & performance management principles to overcome a challenge and achieve their mission.

"Since our founding in 2008, we have been working to help social and public sector organizations execute their missions," said Ted Jackson, Ascendant Managing Partner. "With this grant challenge, we hope to reward one such organization for executing its mission and achieving breakthrough results."

The end of the year is quickly approaching and, for many organizations, this means the time for employee performance reviews. However, a recent Wall Street Journal article (WSJ-Performance Reviews Lose Steam) reported that some, about 1%, of organizations are getting rid of a formal review process due to its ineffectiveness to motivate, and the anxiety it causes among the employees. The article cited an academic review of more than 600 employee-feedback studies, and found that two-thirds of appraisals had zero or even negative effects on employee performance after the feedback was given.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2011 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Ascendant Strategy Management Group today announced the launch of its "Shoot. Post. Win." Facebook video contest for national nonprofit leaders in anticipation of the 2012 Mission-Driven Management Summit in Washington D.C. Contestants can upload video submissions to the Mission-Driven Management Summit Facebook page until February 1, 2012.