When he served as Director of the Inspectors General Auditor Training Institute, Ken Clarke worked with the federal evaluation community and provided government-wide training in program evaluations. He also designed training and instructed auditors and evaluators in how best to assess agency implementation of the Government Performance and Results Act. He has a thorough understanding of the building blocks for agency performance plans and reports—and the essential role to be played by program evaluations in validating program outcomes.
When he served as the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Inspector General's Director of Evaluations, Ken coordinated oversight of Results Act compliance at almost every Treasury bureau. As such, he worked to develop and secure agency support for results-oriented performance measures and ensure incorporation of appropriate measures and methods in component strategic and performance plans. He also conducted briefings for congressional staff and interagency organizations describing performance measures and oversight strategies.
Ken understands the concerns and requirements confronting today's federal Performance Improvement Officers as they implement Executive Order 13450 - Improving Government Program Performance. As federal agencies have administered the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) to diagnose performance, many have felt an increasing strain on their evaluation resources. Even so, Ken believes that rigorous performance assessment must include sufficient internal control testing to ensure program integrity.