PAC PAC Strategic Planning & Policy Development 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which tool helps policy analysts identify internal organizational strengths and weaknesses alongside external opportunities and threats when developing a strategic plan?
- Logic model
- SWOT analysis (Correct answer)
- Decision tree
- Fishbone diagram
Correct answer: SWOT analysis
SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) is a foundational strategic planning tool that assesses internal capabilities alongside the external environment.
Question 2: In strategic planning, 'SMART' goals are defined as goals that are:
- Sustainable, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Transparent
- Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound (Correct answer)
- Strategic, Managed, Aligned, Resourced, and Tracked
- Simple, Meaningful, Actionable, Responsive, and Testable
Correct answer: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound
SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, providing a clear framework for setting actionable policy objectives.
Question 3: The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) Modernization Act of 2010 primarily requires federal agencies to:
- Submit annual budgets aligned with zero-based budgeting principles
- Develop strategic plans, set performance goals, and report publicly on progress toward those goals (Correct answer)
- Conduct regulatory impact analyses for all new programs
- Establish independent inspector general offices for program oversight
Correct answer: Develop strategic plans, set performance goals, and report publicly on progress toward those goals
The GPRA Modernization Act requires agencies to publish four-year strategic plans, set annual performance goals, and report publicly on achievement through performance plans and reports.
Question 4: A policy analyst is helping an agency develop its first strategic plan. Which step should logically come first?
- Setting performance measures for existing programs
- Defining the agency's mission and conducting an environmental scan (Correct answer)
- Identifying which programs to cut to fund strategic priorities
- Drafting the strategic plan document for stakeholder review
Correct answer: Defining the agency's mission and conducting an environmental scan
Strategic planning begins with clarifying the mission (why the agency exists) and scanning the internal and external environment to understand challenges and opportunities.
Question 5: Which type of policy analysis focuses on developing options and recommendations before a policy decision is made?
- Ex post evaluation
- Summative evaluation
- Prospective (prescriptive) policy analysis (Correct answer)
- Impact assessment
Correct answer: Prospective (prescriptive) policy analysis
Prospective or prescriptive analysis is forward-looking, generating alternatives and recommending courses of action to inform upcoming decisions.
Question 6: In policy development, 'problem structuring' is important because:
- It ensures problems are assigned to the correct regulatory agency for resolution
- Poorly structured or incorrectly defined problems lead to solutions that fail to address root causes (Correct answer)
- It satisfies procedural requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act
- It allows analysts to limit the number of policy alternatives considered
Correct answer: Poorly structured or incorrectly defined problems lead to solutions that fail to address root causes
Solving the wrong problem—misdiagnosing root causes—produces policies that don't work; problem structuring ensures analysts address the real issue.
PAC PAC Strategic Planning & Policy Development 1
Which tool helps policy analysts identify internal organizational strengths and weaknesses alongside external opportunities and threats when developing a strategic plan?