Can enhanced performance management support public sector change?

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona Buick ◽  
Deborah Ann Blackman ◽  
Michael Edward O'Donnell ◽  
Janine Louise O'Flynn ◽  
Damian West
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Change Implementation ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Framework

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on the potential role that performance management could play in enabling employees’ adaptability to change and, therefore, successful change implementation. Design/methodology/approach – This research adopted a qualitative case study research design, focussed on seven case studies within the Australian Public Service (APS). This study utilized documentary analysis, semi-structured individual and group interviews. Findings – The findings of this research demonstrate that adaptability to change is integral for high performance; however, the constant change faced by many public servants is disruptive. The authors posit that applying a performance framework developed by Blackman et al. (2013a, b) to change implementation will help overcome, or at least mitigate, these issues. The authors argue that applying this framework will: enable adaptability to change; and provide an ongoing management function that enables change to occur. Research limitations/implications – This research has been limited to seven organizations within the APS, yet it does reveal interesting implications in terms of the apparent role of performance management in both developing change capacity and supporting espoused outcomes. Practical implications – This research identifies the potential role that performance management can play in supporting effective change implementation through enabling employees to cope better with the change through enabling clarity, purpose and alignment with the organizational direction. Originality/value – The originality of this paper stems from the synthesis of different strands of literature, specifically high performance, performance management and change management, and empirical research in the public sector to provide a new way of looking at performance management as a change enabler.

Mergers in Indian public sector banks: can human resource practices ensure effective implementation of change?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Richa Singh ◽  
Geetika Goel ◽  
Piyali Ghosh ◽  
Saitab Sinha
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Resistance To Change ◽  
Change Implementation ◽  
Empirical Examination ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Banks ◽  
Hr Practices ◽  
Effective Change

PurposeThis study examines the link of effective change implementation (CIE) with select human resource (HR) practices and employees' resistance to change (RTC) amidst ongoing mergers in Indian public sector banks (PSBs). It also intends to highlight the role of RTC as a mediator in this mechanism.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a structured questionnaire administered through a survey of employees of select PSBs that have undergone mergers. The hypothesized relationships were tested on 220 responses with structural equation modelling.FindingsTraining and communication of change as HR practices were found to have significant effects in implementing change. RTC fully mediated the relationship of training and CIE, and partially mediated the association of communication and CIE. Communication had a stronger influence on RTC than training. This finding upholds the importance of communication but also implies that training can reinforce effective communication of change and may not affect the implementation if not directed towards handling resistance.Practical implicationsThe significance of communication as a finding supports the theory of planned behaviour. The authors’ results also align with the social exchange theory and can be extended to the job demands-resources model. PSBs may plan for phase-wise training initiatives starting from the announcement till the end of a merger. PSBs also need to effectively communicate all relevant HR issues to employees, thus being transparent and fair. Both online and offline modes of communication can be explored. Overall, the senior management has to imbibe the handholding of employees in the short term and a sense of empathy in the longer term.Originality/valueResearch on HR in Indian banking mergers seems to take a back seat vis-à-vis strategic issues and financial performance. There also is a limited empirical examination of the role of HR practices in effective change implementation. This paper addresses both these issues by proposing a conceptual model and empirically validating it amidst the merger of PSBs. The authors also highlight how training and communication are effective in handling resistance to change.

Integrating organisational- and individual-level performance management systems (PMSS): a case study in a large Indonesian public sector organisation

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rudy M. Harahap
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
Control Systems ◽  
Developing Country ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Management Systems ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Level Performance

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.

scholarly journals Public sector reform and the state of performance management in Portugal: is there a gap between performance measurement and its use?

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 613-627
Author(s):  
Ana I. Melo ◽  
Luís F. Mota
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Ideal Type ◽  
The State ◽  
Performance Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Managers

PurposeThis paper aims to analyse the state of performance management in the Portuguese public sector as part of the efforts towards public administration reform.Design/methodology/approachTheoretically, the authors took Bouckaert and Halligan's (2008, pp. 35–39) approach into consideration to analyse the adoption of performance management practices. This approach was supplemented by an adaptation of Pollitt and Bouckaert's (2011, p. 33) framework to analyse the context for administrative reforms. The used data analysis techniques include documentary analysis (namely legislation and evaluation reports of reform efforts), secondary data analysis and a survey conducted with 296 Portuguese top public managers.FindingsThe findings show that Portuguese public sector organisations adopted several tools to measure performance over the years, but failed to incorporate performance information into their management practices or to properly use it for either internal or external purposes. Concerning the ideal types proposed by Bouckaert and Halligan (2008, p. 36), Portugal is considered to fit the “performance administration” ideal type, even though it is moving closer to the “managements of performance” ideal type.Originality/valueThis is one of the first comprehensive studies on the state of performance management in Portugal framed within the broader context of public sector reforms. The findings will be of interest both to scholars who study public administration reforms and performance management and to Portuguese policy makers and public managers who are interested in understanding and improving the way performance information is measured, incorporated and used in that sector.

Emotional intelligence as an antidote to the negative implications of perceived managerial supplication: a sectorial comparison

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Galit Meisler
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Intelligence ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Political Behavior ◽  
Turnover Intentions ◽  
Mediation Model ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Moderated Mediation Model

PurposeThis study investigated whether managers' nonaggressive political behavior can result in negative emotional and attitudinal outcomes such as aggressive behavior and the role of emotional intelligence (EI) in this context. The authors explored a moderated mediation model in which perceived managerial supplication elicited hostility that increased turnover intentions and the emotional abilities included in EI acted as antidotes to these outcomes.Design/methodology/approachThe authors tested the moderated mediation model using two large samples, one from the public sector and the other from the private sector, providing a cross-sectorial comparison. The authors collected the data for this study in three waves.FindingsThe authors’ findings revealed that the model fit the public sector alone. Moreover, others' emotion appraisal was the only aspect of EI that moderated the hostility and turnover intentions of public servants.Practical implicationsInterventions aimed at increasing the EI level of public servants can be a powerful tool for reducing their hostility and turnover intentions. However, these interventions must focus on all four aspects of EI , particularly others' emotion appraisal.Originality/valueManagers' nonaggressive political behavior can result in negative emotional and attitudinal outcomes such as aggressive behavior. However, EI reduces these negative outcomes among public servants.

Investigating design targets for effective performance management system: an application of balance scorecard using QFD

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alpana Agarwal
Keyword(s):  
Performance Management ◽  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Management System ◽  
Quality Function Deployment ◽  
Employee Performance ◽  
Performance Management System ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Balance Scorecard ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Effective Performance

PurposeAn effective performance management must track level of employee engagement, ensure employee feedback on all aspects and ensure that the people act on that information. Also, it must ensure accessibility of essential conditions to perform. Considering the challenges associated with existing performance management system, present study attempts to discover factual expectations from the employees. The paper also establishes required conditions for fulfilling such expectations.Design/methodology/approachPresent study attempts to discover factual expectations from the employees using the Balance Scorecard approach (BSC). Furthermore, using Quality Function Deployment (QFD), relation between employers' expectation and requirements necessary to fulfill such expectations has also been determined.FindingsThe suggested model has been developed as House Of Performance Management (HOPM) outlining potential leveraging points for enhancing the performance, based on which immediate actionable measures for effective and efficient performance management can also been advocated. The HOQ suggested in this paper can be source of reference while developing performance management system for an organization. Besides, it can help the Human Resource team to discover strategic opportunities and set targets.Originality/valueEffective goal setting, pooled with a method to track progress and identify obstacles, contribute to attainment of bottom to top line results. However, designing and implementing such performance management system has been associated with many challenges like lack of top management support, perception of the process as time-consuming, failure to communicate clear and specific goals and expectations, lack of consistency, etc. (Managing employee performance, 2019). Hence most organizations have been increasingly looking for effective ways of assessing employee performance that can promote stakeholders' satisfaction, employee engagement and continuous improvement.

scholarly journals Beyond the accounting profession

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul D. Ahn ◽  
Kerry Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Budget Process ◽  
Accounting Profession ◽  
Accrual Accounting ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Personal Connections ◽  
Institutional Forces

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how an accounting association and its key members define, control, and claim their knowledge; adopt a closure and/or openness policy to enhance their status/influence; and respond to structural/institutional forces from international organisations and/or the state in a particular historical context, such as a globalised/neo-liberalised setting. Design/methodology/approach The authors draw on Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical tools (field, capital, habitus, and doxa) to understand how public sector accrual accounting was defined, and how the Korean Association for Government Accounting was formed and represented as a group with public sector accounting expertise. The research context was the implementation of accrual accounting in South Korea between 1997/1998, when the Asian financial crisis broke out, and 2006/2007, when accrual accounting was enforced by legislation. The authors interviewed social actors recognised as public sector accounting experts, in addition to examining related documents such as articles in academic journals, newsletters, invitations, membership forms, newspaper articles, and curricula vitae. Findings The authors found that the key founders of KAGA included some public administration professors, who advocated public sector accrual accounting via civil society groups immediately after Korea applied to the International Monetary Fund for bailout loans and a new government was formed in 1997/1998. In conjunction with public servants, they defined and designed public sector accrual accounting as a measure of public sector reform and as a part of the broader government budget process, rather than as an accounting initiative. They also co-opted accounting professors and CPA-qualified accountants through their personal connections, based on shared educational backgrounds, to represent the association as a public sector accounting experts’ group. Originality/value These findings suggest that the study of the accounting profession cannot be restricted to a focus on professional accounting associations and that accounting knowledge can be acquired by non-accountants. Therefore, the authors argue that the relationship between accounting knowledge, institutional forms, and key actors’ strategies is rich and multifaceted.

Managers’ motives for investing in HR practices and their implications for public service motivation

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 764-776 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Seymour Gould-Williams
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Human Resource Management ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Public Service ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Public Service Motivation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hr Practices ◽  
Theoretical Paper

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explain how approaches to human resource management may contribute to the development of public service motivation (PSM). Three different approaches to managing people are outlined, namely, the “high performance”, “high commitment” and “high involvement”. Relevant theories are then used to predict the outcomes and relevance of the different approaches when promoting PSM in public sector organisations. Design/methodology/approach – This is a theoretical paper. Findings – This paper provides the first theoretical explanations for the relationships between human resource (HR) practices and PSM in public sector organisations. Originality/value – This paper explains how the same HR practices may have different employee outcomes depending on managers’ motivations for implementing them.

Mexico power centralisation will bring heavy criticism

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Central Government ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
State Capture

Subject Balance of powers in Mexico. Significance Since taking office last year, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) and his National Renovation Movement (Morena) have taken several measures to make savings in the public sector and to allocate resources to tackling poverty and corruption. Such goals enjoy widespread support, but some of the mechanisms employed to achieve them are concentrating power with the central government. The areas most affected include constitutionally autonomous entities within the administration, other branches of government such as the judiciary, and state governments. Impacts Given the role of poorly paid public servants in state capture, salary cuts may prove counterproductive in fighting corruption. Without a system that impartially investigates, prosecutes and sanctions wrongdoing by public servants, corruption will not abate. Centralisation will strengthen the administration initially but leave it vulnerable in the long term when things do not work as intended.

Assessing and managing the impact of COVID-19: a study of six European cities participating in a circular economy project

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristiana Parisi ◽  
Justyna Bekier
Keyword(s):  
Performance Management ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Measurement Systems ◽  
European Project ◽  
Performance Measurement Systems ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the role of performance measurement systems as technologies of government for the assessment and management of the effects of COVID-19 in the context of six cities involved in a large European project.Design/methodology/approachBased on the field study of a large European project, this paper relies on a comparative case study research approach (Yin, 2003). This research design allows insights into the role of central and local key performance indicators (KPIs) in managing the ongoing pandemic.FindingsThis paper explores the role of accounting in the assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its findings illustrate how the “adjudicating” and “territorialising” roles (Miller and Power, 2013) of local and central accounting technologies rendered the COVID-19 pandemic calculable.Originality/valueThis paper connects central and local performance management systems in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. It relies on a governmentality approach to discuss how different programmes and the relative KPIs were impacted by the ongoing global crisis.

Exploring the art of building a strong performance management system chain

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Performance ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Management Systems ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
A Chain ◽  
Finnish Firms ◽  
Practical Implications

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/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings This research paper analyzes how performance management systems (PMS) affect organizational performance by surveying respondents from an eclectic range of Estonian and Finnish firms. PMS initiatives often fail because of their multiple layers, which form a chain that presents multiple breakage opportunities. PMS at a strategic level most significantly elevated organizational performance. Strengthening a PMS chain increased the chances of the PMS exercise succeeding, therefore managers are advised to achieve high performance by checking that all key characteristics are present to construct a strong PMS chain. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists 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.

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