 At Houston Academics, Inc., our customized and research-based approach to working with public, private, nonprofit and educational institutions looks comprehensively at the holistic needs of each organization via the following four interrelated perspectives: people, processes, resources and outcomes.
By viewing people, namely employees and other internal community stakeholders, we examine the existing human capacity within the subject organization, logical patterns and flow of communications, roles and responsibilities and the like. This provides insight to the organizational culture, as well as the specific technical skills encompassed by the organization. Our process lens examines the formal and informal policies and procedures governing staff interactions, reporting, management, administration, workflow and the like. It is through this prism that a better understanding can be achieved of organizational practices and structure. Resources denote current assets and infrastructure, both tangible and intangible. The former includes quantifiable capital such as financial resources, physical resources (i.e., property, equipment) and technical resources (i.e., accounting systems, computers), whereas the latter includes more qualitative capital (i.e. social capital) such as partnerships.
Lastly, outcomes refer to the extent to which the organization is meeting its stated goals and objectives. Regardless of the intended outcome, Houston Academics, Inc. brings the appropriate technical expertise to bear in reexamining these objectives or identifying new strategies to better achieve them. The sum total of these analyses, when coupled with a structured analysis of the resultant findings, helps to uncover existing challenges, highlight latent opportunities and reveal truly viable solutions. Houston Academics, Inc. prepares public policy briefings, white papers, position papers and conducts policy research to inform the work of practitioners, researchers, professionals and policy makers. This research is often utilized to better understand past efforts, inform current activities or highlight potential future directions for these stakeholders. |
