4. Embed structures to support evidence

What:

How organisations are structured, in terms of delivery and governance, is key to enabling analytical leadership. It is important that departmental governance structures (T) have an analytical aspect built into them to embed the expectation and demand for evidence across an organisation and support a culture of decision-making based on sound evidence (Q).

Two important aspects of embedding structures to support evidence are to:

i. Integrate evidence into policy and decision-making

Analytical leadership is supported when established governance structures enable analytical professions contribute to policy and decision-making at senior levels. Effective structures are also required to facilitate the orderly publication of evidence (T) for public information needs.

ii. Establish structures that support cross-profession collaboration

Collaboration is facilitated when departments establish structures (T) that support different professionals to work effectively together and combine the most suitable analytical evidence and techniques (Q) to answer key questions and support effective decisions.

How:

Our work identified a range of case studies that help demonstrate how to embed structures to support evidence. Some of the essential skills and behaviours illustrated through these examples, include:

Creating governance that prioritises evidence:

Formalise roles, responsibilities, and processes that embed evidence in decisions.

Building cross-profession leadership structures:

Bringing analysts, policy, and delivery leaders together for shared accountability.

Operationalising insights:

Develop processes that turn analysis into actionable steps.

Engaging stakeholders to identify evidence needs:

Use seminars, workshops, and forums to align priorities.

Combining expertise for robust advice:

Draw on internal teams, external specialists, and academic partners.