YouthBuild Blueprint: Data Management

Data management is an executive function and must be led from the top. As a YouthBuild grantee, the systems you put in place for managing data must be as thoroughly planned and organized as the systems you develop for strong educational, vocational, and leadership components. To use data effectively, you first have to collect it. Then that data must be entered into a spreadsheet or case management system that makes it easy for you to identify trends and draw conclusions. And finally, before using the data, you must check to ensure the data was collected and entered correctly.

Collecting Data

Collecting information is a critical step in your data management process. Your program must collect data about your participants during the application process, during Mental Toughness, enrollment, throughout the program cycle, when participants exit, and during the one year of post-program follow-up. Effective data collection relies on your staff understanding

• What information needs to be collected;
• When it will be collected;
• Who is responsible for collecting it; and
• How the information will be collected.

What Information Needs to Be Collected?

For every phase of the YouthBuild program, you must collect different information. You must collect a variety of information on participants from the moment you meet them and begin working with them. For example, you collect:

• Demographic data to determine program eligibility;
• Service data to determine what services are being provided, to whom, how often, and when these services begin and end;
• Data on outcomes as you work with the youth to achieve measurable skill gains, attain certificates or degrees, and transition from the YouthBuild program into an initial placement — can include such items as test scores, certificate attainments, and employer and wage information; and
• Follow-up data to further confirm outcomes, track participant placement in employment or education, and continue to provide supportive services to ensure participant success. This data might include how and when you followed up with your participants to see that they are still in a placement and, if they are not, to assist in finding another placement.

When Will It Be Collected?

After determining what information needs to be collected for each DOL performance outcome and any interim outcomes you track, you must consider when to collect the data. There are defined time periods for each outcome when information may be collected. If information is not collected at the right time, it may not be useful to you, and, even more problematic, it can have a negative effect on your program and your performance reporting. For example: if eligibility information is not collected before you enroll a young person in the program, you may inadvertently enroll someone who is not eligible for the program. When you discover this later in the year, it will be a real hardship for the program to either cover that person's costs from other sources or require the young person to exit the program.

Knowing when to collect data requires you and your staff to understand the "big picture" of performance outcomes. For instance, because post-program follow-up is necessary for the DOL performance outcomes, you need to know that you should collect several different names and contact information for people who will know how to reach your participant after they exit the program. Having multiple contacts may be the difference between data reporting a positive outcome for the youth and no data at all. You may even want to consider setting up free email accounts for each participant to keep in touch with them.

Who Will Collect It?

Because there is so much data to collect on every participant, from simple demographic data to academic data to credential attainment data, collecting data cannot be just one person's job. For this reason, it is essential to be explicit about who is collecting which data and during what period.

Experience has shown that programs often have incomplete data. The program director may not have been clear with each staff person about which data elements that person had responsibility for collecting, or there may have been staff turnover. Explicit communication between the program director and staff regarding data collection and submission is one of the key components of successful and accurate data management.

How Will the Information Be Collected?

How are you going to collect information? For some information, it may be helpful to have paper forms to aid collection. You should ensure that each form has all required information. It will help if you also made sure that there is a management plan in place for all data collection that details how often data will be collected and who will enter it into the Grantee Performance Management System (GPMS), which is discussed in more detail in the next section. This management plan will help to prevent data omissions.

Entering Data

Data collected about your participants must be entered promptly into the DOL GPMS and any other data management systems you might be using. While many staff members and staff of partner organizations may play a role in collecting information about participants, you may only want a select group of staff entering data into the GPMS. These staff members should have the right skill set for data entry and must be properly trained to use the DOL GPMS.

Below are some suggested roles that the right staff members could fill to ensure accurate data entry and management in the DOL GPMS.

GPMS Manager

One way to ensure consistent data entry and quality is to assign a single staff member as the GPMS Manager. The program director should ensure that it is clear which staff member has this role. The GPMS manager requires Grant Administrator user role access in the GPMS. Each grantee has one Grant Administrator in the GPMS, the only user with the privileges to submit and certify the required quarterly reports. Other possible responsibilities for this staff member may include:

• Keep track of any staff-wide policy decisions about the GPMS (e.g., who enters and tracks data collected, etc.);
• Be the primary support person for problems with the GPMS and maintain a written record of issues and fixes;
• Conduct and lead organizational trainings as required;
• Enter data into the system occasionally (backup for the data entry staff); and
• Work with YouthBuild program director to check data for quality control and prepare reports as required.

The GPMS manager role should be written into the staff member’s job description, and plans should be made to hand the role over to a new staff member should the GPMS manager leave or change positions. To fulfill this role, the GPMS manager needs the following:

• Strong computer skills and comfort learning new applications;
• Formal training provided by the DOL GPMS Help Desk; and
• Access to technical support for assistance with the system through the GPMS Help Desk.

Data Entry Staff

The end users are the people who will be entering information into the GPMS and running reports regularly. The responsibilities of the data entry staff are to:

• Create new records and enter information according to organizational standards.
• Update records, including services participants are receiving each month, testing completed, credentials achieved, and placements.
• Run reports to check data accuracy and quality.
• Communicate problems with the GPMS to the GPMS manager.

To fulfill this role, the end user needs the following:

• Basic computer skills (typing, mouse operations, navigating the file system, opening and closing files and programs, proficiency with basic office software);
• Formal training provided by the DOL GPMS HelpDdesk; and
• Access to technical support for assistance with the system through the GPMS Help Desk.

All staff responsible for data entry must have easy access to the data that has been collected and time built into their schedule to devote to data entry.

The DOL GPMS is not just a reporting system. It is also a good tool for data management. Data entry should be done regularly and not saved for the last few weeks before a report is due. If your program doesn’t keep up with timely data entry, participants may be auto-exited by the GPMS system.

Checking Data

Staff who collect and enter data should be checking regularly (weekly for some data, monthly for other data) for errors, and time should be budgeted to review the data that has been entered for accuracy.

There are several ways to check your data:

• The first system should be a “gut check.” The program director should review the data and determine if it makes sense at the most basic level. For example, if you know that five of your participants passed the GED last month, but your GPMS shows no certificate attainments, something is not working correctly in your data management system.
• The checking process may also entail two staff sitting down together, with one person reading test scores aloud while the other checks the numbers in the GPMS, or you may have another system for checking your data.

Remember that program directors are ultimately responsible for the accuracy of the data reported to DOL and used to evaluate program performance. DOL strongly recommends that program directors check the quarterly performance report (QPR) and other management reports in the DOL GPMS monthly to be sure that all data is reflected accurately. The QPRs must contain accurate data, and the best way to ensure they do is to monitor them throughout the quarter and make changes as needed. The DOL GPMS Help Desk is available to train all program directors and other staff to read and understand these reports.

Best Practices for Data Management

• Create a data management calendar. The types of participant data and your program’s data management practice will, in some part, be determined by the stage of your program cycle. Successful YouthBuild programs understand the phases of their program cycle and prepare program staff for the data management workload of each stage. Your data management calendar should be accessible to all staff and must account for the program data you are collecting, entering, checking, and when.
• Determine what information needs to be collected during each of these key periods at your program: pre-enrollment, enrollment, program/training period, exit, and follow-up.
• Use checklists to ensure data completeness and ease the quality control process.
• Make data management a regular part of your schedule. Avoid waiting until quarterly reports are due to start reviewing program data.
• Utilize GPMS support services provided by the GPMS Help Desk. These services include email and telephone support, weekly system trainings, and data reviews.

Related Resources

• Introduction to the Grantee Performance Management System
• The Grantee Performance Management System (GPMS) User Guide V3
• DOL YouthBuild GPMS Data Entry Video Series
• Common Reporting Information System (CRIS): How it Impacts YouthBuild Performance

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• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Posted by: Lisa Reddy
• Posted in: YouthBuild