The purposes of performance management systems and processes: a cross-functional typology

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan Hansen

PurposeThis paper aims to organise, in a general typology, the different purposes of performance management systems and processes (PMSPs) that are discussed across the performance management literature in different functional areas.Design/methodology/approachThe typology is developed based on a traditional review of the performance management literature from three types of functional areas, represented by operations and production management, management accounting and human resource management.FindingsThe cross-functional typology illustrates how the different types of purposes discussed in the literature can be organised in a hierarchical structure. In this way, the basic purpose of organisational value creation for PMSPs can be decomposed into two layers of sub-purposes, the first specifying the domain and the second outlining the specific managerial use of PMSPs.Practical implicationsThe presented typology may help managers across different functional areas map the purposes of their PMSPs; this mapping will not only provide the basics for understanding a PMSP's potential value for an organisation but also serve as an important input for PMSP design.Originality/valueThe presented typology has a broader scope than existing typologies of purposes in research and, consequently, better interrelates and tracks the various types of purposes discussed across different functional areas. This contributes not only to our understanding of performance management as a cross-functional field but also to research on the use and design of PMSPs in organisations.

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 309-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulf Johanson ◽  
Roland Almqvist ◽  
Matti Skoog

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to further develop a conceptual framework for analysing performance management systems (PMS). The framework aims to be useful for a rich understanding of a specific organisation’s PMS. At the same time, it should preferable be simple so that it could be used even in practice. The framework adds to earlier work by Malmi and Brown (2008), Ferreira and Otley (2009), Broadbent and Laughlin (2009), Bedford and Malmi (2015) and Johanson et al. (2001). Design/methodology/approach The paper is theoretical but has also been applied to a Swedish municipality. The purpose of the latter was to understand if the framework is feasible so far. Findings The authors hold that the framework in its present form is useful to use as an analytical tool even if it needs to be subjected to further development. Research limitations/implications The paper addresses an issue that is continuously changing. This means that the suggested framework may suffer from theoretical weaknesses in some respects. To balance between a theoretically deep and exhaustive framework and a framework that is simple enough to use is a tricky question that needs further investigation. Practical implications The ambition with the framework is that it shall be useful even in practice. Originality/value The need for further research in the PMS area has been emphasised by the above researcher but also by, e.g., Van Helden and Reichard (2016). They hold that the authors need rich European cases to improve the understanding of how PMS works. The authors hold that the present framework has the potential to meet the demands from Van Helden and Reichard.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Domenico Berdicchia ◽  
Enrico Bracci ◽  
Giovanni Masino

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of performance management systems (PMSs) and their perceived accuracy on job crafting behaviors via motivation.Design/methodology/approachBy adopting a research design based on three waves, a mediation model was tested using survey data from 12 municipalities in Italy.FindingsPerceived PMS accuracy positively influences “approach” job crafting behaviors through intrinsic motivation and “avoidance” job crafting behaviors through extrinsic motivation.Practical implicationsOrganizations interested in promoting job crafting should ensure that PMSs are designed and implemented in a way that increases perceived PMS accuracy among employees.Originality/valueThe results of this study enrich the literature on job crafting by underlining the role of PMSs as an antecedent of job crafting and by clarifying how different motivational processes may intervene in this relationship.


2014 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 33-35
Author(s):  
Promila Agarwal

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the leadership route for managers to manage performance appraisal effectively. Design/methodology/approach – This paper outlines the importance of playing down personal feelings about individual employees, getting the best out of high and low performers, appreciating good work, connecting with subordinates, being a role model and making the most of diversity. Findings – This paper contends that performance management systems alone can never bring about optimum performance; they must be accompanied by sensitive and inspired leaders who treat their employees as individuals. Practical implications – Attention is drawn to the importance of converting managers into leaders who can deal easily and comfortably with diversity and the unforeseen. Social implications – Some of the challenges of dealing with the modern, diverse workforce have been highlighted. Originality/value – This paper advances the view that good leadership is a tool to balance structured performance management systems with the flexibility needed to tailor the systems to specific employee needs.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings The study develops four case-studies of manufacturing SME’s in morocco, demonstrating that organizational culture has an impact on their performance management systems. Originality The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.


2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 376-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Sales

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a methodology for evaluating the quality of an organization’s performance management system. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents a theoretical development based in extant literature, using a field study to illustrate the application of the methodology in assessing the quality of the performance management system of the case company. Findings The study presents performance management systems as a network of interconnected elements instead of elements that follow a lineal sequence. The more consistently aligned the elements of this network, the more likely it is to be able to influence behaviours and decisions in desirable ways. Research limitations/implications The development requires its use by practitioners and researchers assessing the performance management systems of organizations to assess further implications. It stresses the need to differentiate the purpose of performance management systems from the objectives of the organization. Practical implications The tentative application of the methodology suggests that it provides a helpful tool for practitioners and researchers to assess the functionality of systems in place and to identify opportunities for improvement. Originality/value The methodology overcomes the two limitations of previous studies. First, it uses a holistic approach and does not focus on specific tools; second, it assesses the quality of the system, not from future company results that might be influenced by other variables, but from the consistency and alignment of the elements of the system.


Author(s):  
Nunzio Angiola ◽  
Piervito Bianchi ◽  
Letizia Damato

Purpose Considering a micro performance perspective, the purpose of this paper is to analyze whether and to what extent the adoption of better performance management systems could improve the performance levels of a public university. Design/methodology/approach With reference to a period of four years (2011-2014), the quality of performance management systems of 29 Italian universities (response rate: 48 percent) was examined and the possible effects on performance levels of these institutions were analyzed by means of statistical methodologies (multiple regression analysis). Outcome indicators were considered. Findings The findings indicate the need to go further “measurement,” and to take care of performance “management,” especially in complex organizations as universities, where academicians identify themselves more with their professions than with the organization and where technicians and administrative employees might look at the performance-based reform with “bureaucratic eyes.” A fruitful cooperation between the professional soul and the bureaucratic one is paramount. Originality/value Studies which analyze organizational factors that could affect the adoption and implementation of performance management systems are rare, and use in prevalence qualitative methods or refer to machine bureaucracies, not many to professional ones as public universities. Moreover, the performance management literature in a public university context deepens the topic of the selection of KPIs and the focus is mainly on macro performance or on management tools for gathering and analyzing performance measures.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rudy M. Harahap

Purpose This study aims to comprehensively examine the integration of organisational- and individual-level performance management systems (PMSs) in the context of public sector organisations (PSOs) of developing countries (DCs), by investigating the elements of PMSs in the studied organisation. Design/methodology/approach A case study in a large PSO of a developing country was conducted. The design of the study and the data analysis drew on Ferreira and Otley’s PMSs framework. Data were captured from electronic and printed document archives, online written interviews with participants and face-to-face interviews. The data then were triangulated and analysed thematically. Findings The study reveals a recursive relationship between culture and PMSs, and identifies conflicting regulatory requirements and a lack of information technology capacity led to the development of dual, loosely coupled PMSs in the studied organisation. Research limitations/implications The findings may not be generalisable beyond a large, PSO in a developing country; the study did not consider the linkages between the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs and other PMSs; the study looked at only two notions of culture; and the study asked participants to recall past events, so was retrospective in its design. Practical implications The findings illustrate the need for public sector managers and key policymakers to use both formal and informal control systems, together with technical and social integration mechanisms, as well as management accounting (MA) and human resources management (HRM) control approaches, when attempting to integrate organisational- and individual-level PMSs in the PSOs of DCs. Social implications Future studies may usefully investigate the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs in different contexts, consider culture and contextual factors when investigating the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs in different contexts, examine whether national culture also substantially impacts PMSs in other countries and attempt to inform the MA literature by drawing on HRM theory and research on individual-level PMSs. Such studies may help to address the gap between PMS theory and practice and better allow MA researchers to contribute to practice. Originality/value The study contributes to management control systems (MCSs) and PMSs literature by extending our understandings in the relationship between accounting and non-accounting controls, the contextual factors that affect PMSs and highlighting the importance of considering cultural context when integrating PMSs in the PSOs of DCs.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abiha Zahra ◽  
Geert Bouckaert

PurposeWith performance as a core theme of public sector reforms, this article explores performance management systems in inter-organizational settings while testing the effect of performance measurement on its use for accountability and control. Using economic neo-institutional perspective in a hierarchical context with turbulent political history, the article investigates the variations in the use of performance information in inter-institutional settings across different legal categories of state organizations.Design/methodology/approachThe performance management framework of Van Dooren et al. (2010) is employed as the basis for this research that explains the link between performance measurement and use. To explore the management of performance in Pakistan, the survey data was collected in 2018; after two democratic governments completed their tenures.FindingsThe research indicated a lower extent of performance measurement and use by the parent ministries in the democratic regimes. This finding adds to the implications of economic institutional theory in a politically turbulent context, where political actors place less emphasis on performance and more emphasis on procedures. It was confirmed that the ministries use the measured performance information for accountability and control on the results, but the moderating role of legal categories in the performance framework did not get confirmation.Originality/valueThe article empirically tests the performance management framework from a Western context in a developing country that has not been discussed frequently in the performance management systems literature.


2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 250-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Blahova ◽  
Premysl Palka ◽  
Parissa Haghirian

Purpose This paper aims to investigate current trends in selected management systems and analyses their mutual synergy effects to remaster contemporary enterprise performance management systems in the business sphere. Design/methodology/approach This research involves assembling key academic texts and other literature on the subject of changes in management systems worldwide and their influence on remastering contemporary enterprise performance management systems. The literature is reviewed using a systematic approach. More than 3,000 papers and studies are identified and content analysed. Findings The main trends and emerging themes of management practices in the current business world and their synergy effects are identified, reviewed and classified. Originality/value The field of performance management systems and their remastering based on individual corporate needs is an emergent area of study. This paper is relevant to academics, as well as the corporate world, because it introduces summarized results from an extensive number of published studies on the topic of trends in current management systems, their mutual synergy effects and their influence on performance management systems.


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (2/3) ◽  
pp. 78-87
Author(s):  
Thomas Kaarsted

Purpose Services to researchers are a key strategic focus point for academic libraries. In many cases these services are linked to performance management systems. However, this kind of system for measuring scholarly research has unintended side effects and may demotivate researchers on a number of levels. This presents somewhat of a catch-22 for research libraries. The purpose of this paper is to describe the Bibliometric Research Indicator (BRI) in Denmark, show why the researchers may feel demotivated, outline the dilemmas and the effects on libraries, and present a possible course of action. Design/methodology/approach At least 14 countries have implemented performance management systems for researchers. The impact has been the topic of several – primarily quantitative – studies, e.g., in Denmark. The analysis is made by means of a qualitative study (interviews with 43 Danish researchers), using motivation crowding as well as self-determination theory to further explore their motives and experiences, to determine whether these factors have any influence on their experience of the BRI. Findings The analysis confirms earlier studies which showed that researchers as a whole do not see the BRI as supportive and that this kind of system may have unintended side effects. Unintended side effects include pressure, limitation of freedom, a drop in the perceived standard of research, the slicing of articles, negative collegial behavior as well as borderline academic theft. In connection researchers do not see the incentives or rewards given by the system as supportive. Research limitations/implications This BRI study is made within only one country and as these systems tend to vary not only from country to country but also with incomparability within faculties and institutes, further studies might expose different patterns. However, as the results fit a more general trend within the research area, the takeaways could potentially prove useful for research libraries in general. Furthermore it could be beneficial to research libraries in general to get a clearer understanding of the role they play, which in part could be done by surveying them on this subject. Practical implications The finding presents potential dilemmas for research libraries, as they might get caught in the crossfire between expectations or demands from the university management and the hope and dreams from individual scholars with the risk of unintentionally alienating a key target group. Thus, a possible course of action is outlined including focus points and target areas for libraries. Originality/value This paper presents original research with some key findings with a focus on the dilemmas for research libraries with regard to BRI-like systems, strategic management and performance measurement.


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