Issue 14, February 26, 2010

“NTIA round 2: dont forget to include measurement mechanisms”

Dear Colleague:

As you submit your Round 2 Broadband Stimulus application, make sure to include the measurement of expected outcomes and benefits from your proposed broadband investment. This will show you are confident in the impact your project will have – and welcome accountability.

We can help you put a process in place to articulate and measure “what you are looking to do and the measurable results of implementation.”

Here is an example of how you can incorporate measurement into your proposal:

In order to fully appreciate the benefits derived from the use of the proposed broadband network, it is important to measure local outcomes. Yet, there is very little data related to community return on investment and the socio-economic impact of broadband and e-solutions, and none for [region name]. To address this issue, [Region name] is incorporating into the project metrics to track, benchmark and monitor productivity gains and other economic and socio-economic benefits from the utilization of broadband and e-solutions.

Data sets and specific questions required to evaluate the project will be identified, in order to incorporate the following metrics into the project process:

Project-level outcome metrics: expected service and impacts outcomes; expected outcomes for individual projects and in aggregate;
Socio-economic metrics: capture of utilization patterns and socio-economic impacts and benefits of funding recipients and their targeted clients (institutions, businesses, organizations, individuals).
The above metrics will help quantify and increase awareness of network benefits, identify best practices, and inform future policy and program development.

I’m confident we can help secure Round 2 Stimulus Funds. I’d encourage you to reach out to find out how SNG can help. It’s a competitive process – you need every edge you can get. Visit our sites: sngroup.comm, brain.sngroup.com or arra-broadband.com to learn more, or dont hesitate to contact me.

We’re ready to help you secure Round 2 dollars!