Performance Management in the Public Sector Organization
Introduction
Any organization aims to provide a conducive working environment and to maximize o profits and operations. Performance management is defined as the process in which individuals can perform within the best of their capabilities in order to be able to meet the goals and objectives of an organization. It can also be a form through which an organization sees in order to maximize its productivity through the institution of measures system that is able to gauge the performance levels of all organizational elements. The principal aim of performance management is to ensure the achievement of the organizational goals both effectively and efficiently and that the employees are working and performing o the best of their abilities. Performance management is increasingly being used, especially in this age of budget cuts. Armstrong, 2001, defines performance management as the strategic and, the integrated approach that is used in the delivering of substantial success to an organization, in this case, the public sector organization. This success is attributed to the development of the performance of the staff through the development of the capabilities of the team and the stakeholders. The performance management system is also responsible for the monitoring of any form of challenge within the public sector, and it monitors the progression related to performance improvement.
A public sector organization, on the other hand, is a business enterprise that is owned and its operations controlled by the state or the central government. The public sector organizations are state-owned, the main aim is providing services to the general citizens of the country, the finances for the running of these organizations are state-provided, and the government utilizes the taxes by the public in the investment and maintenance of these organizations. Public sector organizations can be compared to voluntary organizations since they both generate no profits. Examples of public sectors include education, infrastructure, fire services, police services, public healthcare, and public transit, among others. An instance of areas in which performance management is necessary for the public sectors to increase quality includes education, public healthcare, the police force, and public transport. This discussion aims to establish the significance of performance management in improving public sector organizations quality.
Performance management and the public sector
Most of the public services are in great need of moderation and change so as to be in date with the ongoing trends and developments of the 21st century. The advancements in technology in the world and globalization have caused a need for improvement in all sectors, including the public sector organizations. The quality of the public sector services cannot only be improved through investments. Performance management needs to be incorporated into the public sector as well. The quality need of the public sector organizations comes as a result of the increased number of families living together, increase of treatable diseases, causing more people to use the public healthcare services: education is increasingly being adopted as more individuals further in school, and also the issue of most people using the public transport means for their movements. Due to these reasons, there is a profound need in increasing public services, and this can be done through the adoption of the performance management system.
The system of performance management is integrated into an enterprise through levels that facilitate the attainment of a business’s goals. The four levels of integration aimed by performance management include functional integration, which helps in linking the different organizational parts, the vertical integration that aims at connecting the business, the team of employees and the objectives of individuals. There is also the human resource integration that associates the development of a company, the development of the human resource and rewards so as to help in the management of employees. Finally, among the levels is the integration of the needs of an individual with the business needs so as to gain the best ability performance. The performance management system aims at ensuring that there is an understanding of the goals of an organization.
The objective of introducing the PMs into the public sector is to ensure that the organization and its employees produce results that are of high quality. For the public sector performances to be improved, then a few things need to be done. For instance, proper and real incentives should be given to employees for their excellent work, which in turn improves their morale and fulfillment resulting to added performance capabilities: the front line employees also need more authority, and their working conditions developed. In addition to this, there needs to be adequate personnel in the public sector so as to facilitate performance management. Increasing of the staff in the public areas will ensure that work is expertly done by educated employees who perform their obligations with a high standard and added performance abilities. The performance management system is a system that requires organizations to work as a team. This involves a positive relationship between the workforce, the managers, the employers, and the stakeholders, who work together for the attainment of similar goals of an organization. For the success of PMs, then a proper communication channel need to be established. When the public sectors can have an appropriate channel of communication, then they will be able to increase their performance to the customers, and the organization since challenges will be easily identified and solved and the job requirements will be well known. Thus the employees will offer better services
The weakness of the PMS in the Public Sector
The Performance management system in the public sector does not have elaborate expectations of the requirements of its employees. The public sector employees require an organization that guarantees them of their job, the significance of their career, good relation with the other workforce, and an organization that develops their skills. In this case, the PMs that should be adopted by the public sector should conform to the aspirations of the employees and also should be one that enables the employees to adapt to changes. The public sector constitutes a system in which the employees are required to follow a set of instructions given to them by the management and the superiors. These form of governance has caused an effect on the manner in which the public sector staff conducts their duties.
The PMS in the public sector does not offer employee development opportunities. The public sector, therefore, needs to institute a policy of reward so as to enable the PMS to will allow the staff to have a more strong drive for work and to help in achieving the set goals. The adoption of a performance management system will result in allowing employees to contribute their opinions in times of decision making. The involvement of employees in the decision-making process enables them to feel significant and valued, and therefore they opt to add on their performance levels so as to keep their value in an organization. According to empirical research, among the factors causing the underdevelopment of the public sectors is the poor coordination of processes as a result of slow decision making by the government and the stakeholders. Evidence holds that the industry is bound to benefit from this problem through rapid processes of decision making that will enable the implementation of the industries functions effectively. This development will result in the sector’s improvement in its activities within a short duration of periods so as to meet the demands and needs of the citizens.
Lack of the establishment of the high-quality knowledge management process is another weakness facing the PMS in the public sector. The lack of this process denies the employees of the public sector the ability to share their ideas and opinions through the formulation of a team that allow them to improve on their performance in their responsibilities in the public organizations. A sound performance management system, therefore, needs to focus on several phases in the public sector that involve; communication, accountability, development of skills, and the measurements of the results of both successful and poor performances.
Improvements strategies for the PMS in the Public Sector
One of the leading factors in the improvement of performance management in the public sector is skill development. This development will help the public sector in developing a talent management system. This system will compose of ensuring that the employees in the public sector are assigned to responsibilities that they are capable of accomplishing. Besides, the scheme will encourage the government to establish training plans for the public sector workforce that will facilitate the transfer of appropriate skills to the employees. As a result, the sector will be able to hire adequate staff who will conduct high-quality duties due to the availability of knowledge on the responsibilities of the training. The training formulated by the government on behalf of the public sector will enable the employees to achieve their goals and at the same time, meet the purposes of the organization. According to the goal-setting theory by Edwin Locke in 1968, individual goals play a significant role in motivating an individual’s performance levels. This is as a result of their own following their goals and wanting to achieve them. Therefore, through training, the public sector increasing an individual. An effort to attaining their skill goals.
The public sector would also adapt the competency model that consists of categories that note the nature of responsibilities for different employees. Some of the duties of the public sector staff include technical duties, administrative burdens, and managerial tasks. The sector would then use the performance system to appraise the performance of the employees through different standards. The used appraisals need to be fair and equal to all employees in all public sectors. To assess the manner in which the staff is performing their responsibilities, metrics concerning their teamwork abilities, interpersonal relationships, and high-quality results will be used in the appraisal. This model will help the government to recognize the employees who are excellent in their job and motivate them to work more hard in the future. This appraisal technique will motivate the employees in the public sector to work hard and improve the performance of the industry.
Conclusion
Performance management systems that are formulated and implemented results to excellent quality services from the public sector. For this to take place, the public sector needs to achieve some elements like the establishment of a good communication channel, adoption of performance management models like the competency model, the appraisal system and skill development. These systems will help in improving the performance in the public sector organizations. Considering that the sector is not profit-oriented, quality services and improved performance will help in keeping the sector running and operating.
Shields, J, Brown, M, Kaine, S, Samuel, C, Samardzic, AN, McLean, P, Johns, R, O’Leary, P, Plimmer, G & Robinson, J 2016, Managing Employee Performance and Reward: Concepts, Practices, Strategies, 2nd Edition, Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne