Selected financial indicators as a tool for optimizing local government units management
Finances of each organization are the basic security of its existence and the main indicator of its profitability. In local government units public finances, despite many similarities, are governed by different rules than economic entities, if only because local governments have systemically guaranteed income in the form of state grants and subsidies. New and modern methods of financial management appear in self-government financial management. We can notice it both in the scope of sources of investment financing and the scope of information and data justifying or negating financial decisions and, consequently, local government management. Financial indicators as tools supporting the decision-making process of governing bodies are an important factor in decision-making, including the implementation of public tasks, satisfaction of social needs and expectations. Thanks to indicators local governments have analytical information, useful in the process of management taking into account social expectations comparable to other units. The indicators show where a given self-government unit is in relation to its competitors, allow for a comparable evaluation of the achievable results and for a social evaluation covering the expectations and needs of the community's inhabitants. It should be noted that the indicators are the effect of using data, which are very abundant on the local government and business market. We often deal with metadata covering the whole country and regions and their sources are more or less reliable. Reliability of sources is extremely important in public perception. It is guaranteed by institutions representing information collected on the basis of systematic reports, obtained in a uniform space for all local government units. Both data and indicators calculated on their basis, as well as reliable rankings presented, are tools used by mayors of communes, local communities, more and more often government institutions, funds, agencies and media presenting more and less reliable rankings.