A county government wants to start a cost-effective recycling program. How can the county apply data analytic approaches to attain this goal?

To design a cost-effective program, a government entity can apply benchmarking, a key data analytic approach. By analyzing data on the strategies, costs, and outcomes of recycling programs in other similar counties, the government can identify best practices and proven, efficient models. This comparative analysis allows them to adopt strategies that are most likely to succeed and be cost-effective, avoiding the trial-and-error costs of developing a program from scratch.

A. Analyzing budgetary impacts of contracts is a management task for an existing program, not a method for designing a new one to be cost-effective.

B. Aligning funds with employee numbers is an internal allocation tactic that does not guarantee the overall program's cost-effectiveness.

D. Researching audit performance relates to financial compliance and accountability, not the operational cost-effectiveness of a specific service like recycling.

1. Hatry, H. P. (2006). Performance Measurement: Getting Results (2nd ed.). The Urban Institute Press. Chapter 7, "Using Performance Information," explains how governments use comparative analysis (benchmarking) against other jurisdictions to identify best practices and improve program effectiveness and efficiency (pp. 151-155).

2. Kouzmin, A., Löffler, E., Klages, H., & Korac-Kakabadse, N. (1999). Benchmarking and performance measurement in public sectors. The International Journal of Public Sector Management, 12(2), 121-144. https://doi.org/10.1108/09513559910263462. This article discusses benchmarking as a tool for public sector organizations to learn from others to improve service delivery and cost-effectiveness.