Competency 17

Implement actions and measure results.

Educational leaders must have the ability to:

1. Implement and monitoring the action plan, intervention, or solution.
2. Generate, collect, manage, and analyze data about a problem solution or intervention.
3. Analyze data on an ongoing basis, in collaboration with others as appropriate.
4. Implement measures that ensure credibility of the process.
5. Draw valid inferences from data.
6. Make informed, evidence-based decisions to adjust the action plan.
7. Discuss progress and interim findings in collaboration with those who need to know.
8. Show proficiency with the analysis and interpretation of evidence and data, including use of software.
9. Plan for future cycles of problem solving or research.

Competency 17 is the second part of a three-part action research cycle that includes competencies 16, 17, and 18. Together, the competencies form a cycle of inquiry that can be applied to site-based applied research and problem solving:

1. Plan for research and problem solving (including identification and framing of problems, generation of alternatives or solutions, and development of action plans and metrics);
2. Implement actions and measure results (including data collection and analysis and dialogue with participants);
3. Evaluate and reflect on results of actions and decisions (including collective reflection and discussion with participants and decisions about new actions).

When the problem to be solved or researched has been framed, studied, and a plan developed for action, implementation (action) takes place. The implementation phase of an applied site-based research initiative involves a systematic generation and collection of evidence about the intervention or problem solution, ongoing analysis of the data, and sharing analysis steps and feedback with relevant collaborators (Coghlan & Brannick, 2005).

When leaders take action in organizations, they understand the connection between the steps they take in implementing change and the impact the resulting actions will have on the organization. Leaders will have evaluated whether the change or intervention addresses improvement of existing processes or requires systemic changes in the assumptions made about the best ways to act and think (Coghlan & Brannick, 2005).  

During implementation, the effective educational leader must be able to quickly evaluate the situational nuance that exists within the organization and evaluate its own capacity to respond to multiple facets of the change continuum. Even the act of generating data is a form of intervention. Performing ongoing data analysis and sharing feedback with others who need to understand the changes (and may collaborate on analysis and decision-making) is an important ongoing strategy to inform modifications to the plan and day-to-day decisions about the changes throughout implementation (Coghlin & Brannick, 2005; Marzano, Waters, & McNulty, 2008; Stringer, 2004). 

A leader's knowledge and skills in data collection and analysis methods are critical, whether the leader is working with others to analyze data collaboratively or drawing appropriate and valid inferences from analysis conducted by others. Additionally, leaders should be able to use software to conduct data analysis as needed, and to interpret computer generated data output. Ongoing analysis is critical because the effects of an intervention or solution may be unexpected. Interim analysis of the actions may result in changes that unexpectedly take the organization in a new direction- which may be desirable or undesirable. Unlike other types of research, applied site-based research that involves the continuous analysis and monitoring of action is a dynamic process that allows for adjustments to plans as the intervention unfolds, and for future cycles of action. While care should be taken not to change direction too early in the process on the basis of limited data, applied site-based research is often an iterative, non-linear process (Creswell, 2005; Mills, 2003).

Well-developed knowledge of data analysis, thinking skills, and organizational context also allows an educational leader to use patterns revealed by the data to establish a deeper understanding of the context and implications of the intervention. A skilled leader understands the difference between correlation and causality, a difference that informs conclusions and next steps. A leader must breed an ethic of discipline so that evidence, results, and inferences drawn from the results are carefully analyzed and subsequently reevaluated over time (Richetti & Tregoe, 2001).

Change processes also involve an important political dynamic. Even the most research-based implementation plan has to be delivered in a strategic and specific way in order for an organization to be successful. A leader understands the potential situational conflicts and even the old organizational "wounds" that may need to be soothed over if the shift in organizational culture is to occur (Dickman & Stanford-Blair, 2002; Wheatley, 1999). Effective leaders develop the political acumen for evaluating these evolving assessment opportunities and learn to respond to new information, while helping others in the organization see the results in context.

Effective leaders recognize that leadership is not defined by a position or organizational chart. Instead, leadership is a force within an organization that can shape the world around it. The educational leader has the opportunity to establish a careful and continuous balance between program implementation and the continuous assessment of the implementation and its results. Leaders help bend and shape action in a focused and purposeful direction. To do this, they are thoughtful about the implementation of change and its ultimate assessment.

If the leader has the critical research knowledge and skills to implement a well-informed and often collaboratively developed applied site-based research plan, an emphasis can be placed on a remaining key element in problem solving or implementing an action plan. The key element is another "habit of mind," the ability to remain open-minded about the strategy itself. A complete plan is rarely complete. Surprises are inevitable. According to Montgomery (2008), "there will always be countless contingencies, good and bad, that cannot be fully anticipated. There will always be limits to communication and mutual understanding" (p. 59). This is key to effective implementation of Competency 17.

References

Coghlan, D., & Brannick, T. (2005). Doing action research in your own organization (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Creswell, J. W. (2005). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Dickman, M. H., & Stanford-Blair, N. (2002). Connecting leadership to the brain. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Marzano, R., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. (2008). School leadership that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Mills, G. E. (2003). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Montgomery, C. (2008). Putting leadership back into strategy. Harvard Business Review, 54-60.

Richetti, C. T., Tregoe, B. B. (2001). Analytic processes for school leaders. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Stringer, E. (2004). Action research in education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Wheatley, M. (1999). Leadership and the new science. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler.