# Decision Support Analytics Course Canonical URL: ## Overview Develop your skills and capabilities for improved financial and performance management and decision-making, especially in today's environment of declining budgets and increased performance expectations. Enhance your business intelligence to help you effectively manage and make informed decisions affecting your programs and services to the American public. Learn techniques from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for evaluating agency and program performance to provide financial and performance information in a useful form, anticipate OMB actions, effectively manage your program responsibilities, and truly support the business of government. ## What you'll learn - Follow a comprehensive, structured approach for conducting analysis. - Formulate specific, answerable questions to guide and control the analysis. - Determine where and in what form data exists to answer the questions. - Identify and select data collection methods. - Identify and select data analysis methods. - Present the results of the analysis in a structured format to respond fully to the identified questions. - Apply the five-step structured analytical approach to a case. ## Curriculum #### Module 1: Management Reform Drivers - Explore the legislative and executive changes that drive the need for stronger analytics in federal decision-making. - Understand the evolution of federal performance expectations and accountability standards. - Examine the roles of CFOs and analysts in navigating performance management and resource allocation. - Identify major management laws and executive initiatives impacting federal agencies. #### Module 2: Structured Approach for Conducting Analysis - Learn a five-step, structured framework for analysis in a federal environment. - Connect analytical methods to management questions in budgeting, performance, and finance. - Compare structured agency analysis to performance audit methodology. - Use a design matrix to document, plan, and track analytical activities. #### Module 3: Step 1 – Defining the Questions That Drive Analysis - Develop descriptive, normative, and impact-driven analytical questions. - Apply critical thinking and stakeholder alignment in formulating questions. - Differentiate between overarching and subordinate questions. - Organize questions into eight categories, including program impact and policy design. #### Module 4: Step 2 – Identifying the Data - Assess data quality based on reliability, verifiability, relevance, and consistency. - Evaluate accessibility vs. availability to set realistic project timelines. - Compare data from people vs. records and understand the pros/cons of each. - Ensure identified data effectively supports analytical questions. #### Module 5: Step 3 – Collecting the Data - Understand methods for gathering data from systems, reports, people, and surveys. - Use agency performance and accountability reports and financial statements as data sources. - Consider sampling methods and limitations of data used in analysis. - Recognize internal and external data constraints in planning and reporting. #### Module 6: Step 4 – Analyzing the Data - Apply analytical methods to descriptive, normative, and impact-based questions. - Use content, trend, statistical, and benchmarking analyses appropriately. - Understand how to use logic models and causal relationships in data interpretation. - Select suitable analytical techniques based on the scope and purpose of analysis. #### Module 7: Step 5 – Presenting the Results - Communicate findings through written reports and oral briefings. - Structure reports to clearly answer questions, show methods, and support recommendations. - Incorporate visual aids and summary sections to clarify results for decision-makers. - Demonstrate sufficiency, relevance, and appropriateness of evidence in communication. #### Module 8: Case Study - Apply the full five-step analysis model to a realistic agency scenario. - Assess internal controls within a Department of Public Health and Safety case study. - Practice defining questions, identifying and collecting data, and reporting recommendations. - Produce an executive summary including condition, criteria, cause, and effect findings. ## Schedule - Aug 31, 2026 – Sep 2, 2026 — Live Online - Sep 28, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026 — Live Online - Nov 30, 2026 – Dec 2, 2026 — Live Online ## Instructors ### Alan B. Robinson — Instructor Mr. Robinson is a seasoned legal and federal employment expert with over two decades of experience. He recently retired from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, where he spent 11 years as Deputy Director/Director for the Office of Outreach, Diversity, and Equal Opportunity (ODEO) and 8 years as Chief of Employee and Labor Relations. In these roles, he provided extensive guidance on federal employment matters, showcasing his deep expertise in labor relations and diversity initiatives. A graduate of the University of Virginia with a B.A. in Government, Mr. Robinson earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Maryland School of Law. He is licensed to practice law in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Before his federal service, he built a robust legal career, starting as a law clerk for the Baltimore City Orphan’s Court, followed by 10 years as a civil defense litigator with a D.C. law firm, and later operating his own solo practice for 5 years. His private practice focused on representing federal agencies, employees, municipalities, and private entities in employment-related cases before the EEOC, Merit Systems Protection Board, and various courts. Currently, Mr. Robinson shares his wealth of knowledge as an adjunct instructor with the Graduate School USA and serves as a registered arbitrator for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). His extensive background in law, federal employment, and diversity makes him a valuable resource in his field. ### Kent Miller — Instructor Kent D. Miller, Jr., MBA, CDFM-A, is a highly accomplished financial management expert and educator with over 40 years of experience in both the public and private sectors. A retired U.S. Army officer, Kent has held leadership roles such as Controller/CFO for the U.S. Army Missile Command and Program Manager/Financial Analyst for the Assistant Secretary of the Army. His expertise spans budgeting, cost analysis, managerial accounting, and financial systems implementation. Notably, he managed a $9 billion organization, supervised a financial staff of 150, and developed funding requirements and congressional testimony for senior Army leadership. Kent’s career also includes consulting and training, where he has developed over 50 courses and taught more than 20,000 students from federal agencies and contractors. As an adjunct instructor at Graduate School USA since 2005, Kent specializes in financial management training for federal employees. His courses cover a wide range of topics, including appropriations law, budget formulation and execution, and performance-based budgeting. Kent’s teaching is informed by his extensive experience in planning, programming, and budgeting, as well as his work in reengineering processes to achieve cost savings. He is also a Certified Defense Financial Manager with Acquisition Specialty (CDFM-A) and has been recognized for his leadership in professional organizations such as the Society of Defense Financial Management and the Association of Government Accountants. ### Alan McCain — Curriculum Program Manager Alan McCain is a retired combat veteran who served as both an Air Force enlisted member and a Navy officer. He brings over 30 years of experience spanning federal and commercial budgeting, auditing, programming, operations, global logistics support, supply chain and inventory management, as well as major IT acquisition. He possesses extensive, hands-on budget and audit experience across Federal, State, and Local government operations, including work within the Executive Office of the President and the Departments of State, Defense, Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Education, as well as the Office of the Mayor of Washington, D.C., among others. Alan’s consulting background includes strategic planning and business development with the District of Columbia government, multiple federal agencies, Lockheed Martin, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is a Certified Government/Defense Financial Manager (CGFM/DFM), holds a Teaching Certification from Harvard University’s Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, and earned an Executive MBA in International Business from The George Washington University. ## Pricing **Tuition:** $1199