Performance Management Performance Management for Better Service Delivery for Better Service Delivery

in Local Governmentin Local GovernmentGood Practice from the Commonwealth & Good Practice from the Commonwealth &

International DevelopmentInternational Development

Philip D. OseiPhilip D. Osei

OutlineOutline

• Evolution of a culture of performance in international public management.

• Lesson learning and policy transfer• Process issues• Management and institutionalisation

issues.• Challenges• Ways forward

Process stepsProcess steps

• Create a conceptual framework for performance measurement

• Conduct a ‘service inventory’• Identify intents, goals and indicators• Devise analysing and reporting

systems

Management StepsManagement Steps

• Build a performance team and communication networks

• Build ownership and commitment• Assign accountability• Use performance data in service delivery

decision-making

Create a conceptual framework Create a conceptual framework for performance measurementfor performance measurement

• Performance measurement is the first step towards knowing how well a local government provides its services.

• In order to measure the correct key services, measurements have to look at the city’s strategic plan, vision and mission, and take into account budget information.

Conduct a ‘service inventory’Conduct a ‘service inventory’

• At the start of any performance measurement initiative it is necessary to know which services to measure. The city of Tempe in Arizona USA is said to have developed a a useful template of city services from the perspective of users, called a ‘service inventory’. This made the definition of key services which are important to customers therefore became considerably easier.

Identify intents, goals and Identify intents, goals and indicatorsindicators

• After identifying the key services to be measured, departments should formulate the intents and goals of each service. Devising indicators which will gauge how well the local government performs in relation to set goals, and specifying methods of data collection conclude the process of measurement planning.

Devise analysing and reporting Devise analysing and reporting systemssystems

• The key performance measurement phase, which is the phase which stimulates service improvements, is the analysis and reporting of the collected performance data to decision-makers. Information processed in this phase provides management and elected officials with a foundation for deciding which services are performing well and which need improvement.

MANAGEMENT STEPS

Build a performance team and Build a performance team and communication networkscommunication networks

• Only if the concept of performance measurement permeates through the whole organisation can it be successful. Involving employees, stakeholders and customers in planning the system is the first step to building their trust and commitment in the implementation phases. Regular, open and accessible communication channels support the system throughout its lifecycle and ensure that deficiencies are communicated early.

Build Ownership and CommitmentBuild Ownership and Commitment

• Ownership and commitment relate closely to inclusion and communication. Because the key pressures of real measuring rest with the employees, it is vital that they believe in its benefits to themselves, to the organisation and to the customer.

Assign AccountabilityAssign Accountability

• Clear accountability represents a kind of system insurance, ensuring that measurement is properly conducted and results are properly reported. It is unadvisable to leave all accountability to rest on top management; on the contrary, dividing it proportionally among management levels may help to prevent late revelation of possible system challenges.

Use performance data in service Use performance data in service delivery decision-makingdelivery decision-making

• Integral use of performance information lies in making decisions about which services are underperforming and need more attention. While a synthesis with other kinds of information is needed to establish ‘why’ a service is not performing, measurement data are the necessary foundation.

LessonsLessons

• It is thought that performance management and its variants have been used in business for a long time, and since the advent of NPM, central governments have taken advantage of these technologies. Local Government has been slow to adopt these efficiency enhancing techniques to improve service delivery. Local governments are therefore being urged to be innovative.

ReferencesReferences

• Dienerova, Katarina and Alam, Munawwar (2006) Performance Management and performance indicators in local government. In Alam, Munawwar and Nickson, Andrew (eds.) (2006) Managing Change in Local Governance. London: Commonwealth Secretariat.

• OECD Policy Brief, 2004, Public Sector Modernisation: Governing for Performance. Paris: OECD. October. www.oecd.org/publications/policy_brief.